AI Engineer market brief · San Diego, CA
AI Engineer Jobs in San Diego, CA
38 AI engineer openings are live in the San Diego, CA area from 17 employers, led by Deloitte6, Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP, and Qualcomm International Inc., Mexico Branch Office. The middle half of posted salaries runs $96,500–$135,356 a year (median $116,150), from the 95% of listings that disclose pay. Mid-level roles are the largest group, at 39% of openings.
Data updated Oct 12, 2026
Role and market snapshot
A quick read on demand before you open the live listings
Tracked jobs
- 38
- Live AI engineer openings currently tracked in the San Diego market.
Companies hiring
- 17
- Distinct employers represented in this publishable market view.
Median compensation
- $116,150
- 95% of listings provide usable compensation data.
Market analysis
Role-specific demand, level, employer, and compensation signals for this local market
Start with the level mix, then compare current demand, compensation coverage, and employer concentration before opening the live listings.
Level mix
Career ladder
San Diego is mid-level-heavy for AI engineer roles: 48% of currently tracked openings with a derived level sit at mid-level. Entry-level openings exist, but they are a smaller slice of the market.
30-day window
Demand and salary
Current jobs
38
Hiring employers
17
Salary coverage
95%
Median experience
4.0 years
Within this market
Employer tier lens
Startups & growing teams
19
8 companies · $99,500 median
Established employers
15
6 companies · $121,624 median
Coverage-gated
Salary distribution
P25
$96,500
P50
$116,150
P75
$135,356
P90
$164,000
Salary figures use annualized USD posted minimum compensation from listings in this market. An employer that posts the same pay on many listings counts once, and figures render only when enough distinct employers disclose pay.
Use Metaintro
Turn this market signal into momentum
Move from aggregate demand to the live roles hiring in this market now.
- Open live AI engineer listings in San Diego
- Compare the level mix before narrowing your search
- Use employer and compensation signals to prioritize outreach
Turn this market brief into a live search.
Use the signal
The best next step is opening the roles behind the aggregate: compare AI engineer opportunities in San Diego, save the strongest fits, and keep the market signal close while you apply.
- 38 live roles tracked in this market.
- 17 employers represented in the current window.
- Market data refreshed Oct 12, 2026.
A practical market plan for AI Engineer in San Diego
Use this sequence to move from aggregate labor-market data to a focused application list.
- 01
Read the demand
38 AI engineer openings across 17 employers establish the current San Diego opportunity set.
- 02
Choose the right rung
Mid-level leads the derived level mix with 15 tracked openings.
- 03
Prioritize employers
Deloitte6 is one of the most active visible employers, with 7 current openings in this market view.
- 04
Open the live roles
24 representative openings connect this brief to jobs you can review now.
With Metaintro
Keep market research, live opportunities, saved roles, and the evidence behind your applications moving in one focused loop.
Where this market is hiring
Move from the San Diego market view into active employers and representative AI engineer openings
Employer activity · 17 companies
Who is hiring in this market
The most active visible employers, ordered by openings represented in the current market sample.
Live opportunity sample · 24 of 38 matches
Representative openings
Open a role to inspect the full requirements. Compensation appears only when the listing provides usable salary data.
More AI engineer openings in San Diego
- Agentic AI Engineer (Xora Portfolio Company) · Xora Innovation
- Senior AI Engineer (Xora Portfolio Company) · Xora Innovation
- CTIO-AI Engineer-Sr Associate · Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP
- Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Engineering Internship – Summer 2027 · Qualcomm International Inc., Mexico Branch Office
- Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Engineering Internship – Summer 2027 · Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
- Oracle Generative AI Senior Consultant · Deloitte6
- #Windows Audio Software Engineer (Voice AI) — Engineer · Qualcomm International Inc., Mexico Branch Office
- #Windows Audio Software Engineer (Voice AI) — Engineer · Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
- Generative AI Application Engineer, Learning & Development (R5856) · shieldai
- Researcher - Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning · University of San Diego
- Researcher - Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning · University of San Diego
- Agentic AI Engineer - Anthropic/Claude · Deloitte6
- Principal Scientist, R&D Data, Data Science & Artificial Intelligence - Immunology · jj
- Principal Scientist, R&D Data, Data Science & Artificial Intelligence - Immunology · 6149-DePuy Synthes Products Inc. Legal Entity
- Agentic AI Engineer, Senior - Anthropic/Claude · Deloitte6
- CTIO - AI Engineer- Senior Manager · Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP
AI Engineer jobs in San Diego: what applicants need to know
Current answers for a difficult AI-era job search, grounded in this publishable role and location market view rather than generic career advice.
- 01
How many AI engineer jobs are open in San Diego?
Metaintro tracks 38 live AI engineer openings from 17 employers in the San Diego, CA area over the last 30 days.
- 02
What do AI engineer jobs in San Diego pay?
The median posted salary is $116,150 a year. The middle half of posted salaries runs $96,500 to $135,356. Based on the 95% of current listings that disclose pay.
- 03
Which experience level has the most AI engineer openings in San Diego?
Mid-level roles lead with 15 openings. Experience level is known for 82% of this market's listings.
- 04
Which companies are hiring for AI engineer jobs in San Diego?
Deloitte6, Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP, Qualcomm International Inc., Mexico Branch Office, and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have the most open AI engineer roles here right now, out of 17 hiring employers.
Continue with the next market signal
Compare nearby cities, adjacent roles, and publishable level views without leaving the live jobs cluster
Nearby cities
Compare AI Engineer demand around San Diego.
Related roles
See adjacent role demand in the San Diego market.
Level views
Narrow the market to experience levels with enough reliable data.