Job Title: Lead QA Engineer - AI/MLLocation: Remote (Brazil/Mexico)ContractAbout Smart IT Frame:At Smart IT Frame, we connect top talent with leading organizations across the USA. With over a decade of staffing excellence, we specialize in IT, healthcare, and professional roles, empowering both clients and candidates to grow together.Role Overview- We are seeking a highly skilled, forward-thinking Lead QA Engineer to drive our quality strategy, with a strong emphasis on test automation and AI-driven testing solutions.- This role combines leadership, technical expertise, and innovation to deliver high-quality software at scale.- You will lead QA initiatives, mentor a team of engineers, and champion modern approaches to quality engineering, including machine learning and AI-assisted testing—while maintaining deep expertise in manual and blackbox testing practices.Key ResponsibilitiesLeadership & Strategy- Define and implement the QA strategy with a focus on automation-first and AI-enhanced testing.- Lead and mentor a team of QA engineers across both manual and automation disciplines.- Establish best practices, standards, and KPIs for quality engineering.Automation Excellence- Design, build, and maintain scalable automated test frameworks.- Drive adoption of CI/CD-integrated testing pipelines.- Ensure high test coverage across:- UI- API- Performance- Security layersAI-Driven Testing- Evaluate and implement AI/ML tools for:- Test generation- Maintenance- Defect prediction- Leverage AI for:- Intelligent test case prioritization- Self-healing test scripts- Stay up to date with emerging AI technologies and integrate them into QA workflows.Manual & Blackbox Testing Leadership- Define and oversee comprehensive blackbox testing strategies, including:- Exploratory testing- Usability testing- Regression testing- End-to-end testing- Ensure thorough validation of business requirements and user flows without reliance on internal code knowledge.- Lead complex manual testing efforts for new features, edge cases, and high-risk areas.- Establish best practices for:- Test case design- Test data management- Defect reportingCollaboration- Work closely with engineering, product, and DevOps teams to embed quality throughout the SDLC.- Participate in architecture and design discussions to ensure testability and scalability.Quality Advocacy- Promote a culture of quality ownership across teams.- Conduct risk assessments and ensure timely defect resolution.Required Qualifications- Strong expertise in both automated and manual (blackbox) testing methodologies.- Proven experience designing and executing:- Detailed manual test plans- Exploratory testing- End-to-end validation- Deep understanding of blackbox testing techniques, including:- Equivalence partitioning- Boundary value analysis- User-centric validation- Strong expertise in test automation frameworks:- Selenium- Playwright- Cypress- Proficiency in at least one programming language:- Python- Java- JavaScript / TypeScript (preferably)- Experience with CI/CD tools:- Jenkins- GitHub Actions- GitLab CI- Solid understanding of software testing methodologies and SDLC.Preferred Qualifications- Hands-on experience with AI/ML tools in QA (e.G., test generation, visual testing, anomaly detection).- Familiarity with AI-powered testing platforms or frameworks.- Experience balancing manual exploratory testing with automation strategies in complex systems.- Experience with performance testing tools:- JMeter- k6- Knowledge of cloud platforms:- AWS- GCP- Azure- Experience with containerization:- Docker- KubernetesKey Skills- Leadership and team development- Strategic thinking and problem-solving- Strong communication and collaboration- Innovation mindset with a passion for AI in testing- Strong analytical skills with attention to detail- Ability to deeply understand user behavior through manual testing approaches📩 Apply today or share profiles at