Chief AI Architect & Production Systems Lead

National Australia Bank Ltd.; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 250,000 - 350,000; Full time

Job summary

National Australia Bank Ltd. is seeking a hands-on Head of AI Science in Australia to lead NAB's AI science team and shape next-generation AI capabilities.

You will design agent-based systems, define prompting and context management, and drive production-ready AI solutions across NAB’s core products. The role combines deep ML technical leadership with strategic influence across engineering and product teams, delivering measurable business outcomes while championing safety, reliability, and

Qualifications

• Deep expertise in LLMs, agentic systems, prompt engineering, and retrieval-augmented generation.
• Proven experience designing and deploying AI systems in production environments.
• Strong hands-on background in ML, with depth in optimisation or reinforcement learning.
• Solid foundations in statistics, probability, and experimental design.
• Experience leading or mentoring high-performing data science teams.
• Ability to operate across AI research and engineering implementation.
• Strong communication skills to translate complex concepts into business impact.
• Relevant degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, Statistics, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Architect and design agent-based AI systems powering NAB's core AI products.
• Define prompting strategies, orchestration patterns, and context management approaches.
• Lead technical design decisions ensuring AI systems are safe, accurate, and reliable.
• Translate AI architecture into production systems in partnership with engineering teams.
• Drive delivery of advanced AI solutions through a high-performing data science team.
• Collaborate across product, engineering, and business to deliver measurable outcomes.
• Champion innovation through experimentation and continuous improvement.

Skills

LLMs

Agentic AI

Prompt engineering

RAG techniques

Production deployment

Machine learning

Optimization

Reinforcement learning

Stats & DOE

Cross-functional leadership

Communication skills

Education

Degree in CS/Math/Stats

Job description

National Australia Bank Ltd. is seeking a hands-on Head of AI Science in Australia to lead NAB's AI science team and shape next-generation AI capabilities.

You will design agent-based systems, define prompting and context management, and drive production-ready AI solutions across NAB’s core products. The role combines deep ML technical leadership with strategic influence across engineering and product teams, delivering measurable business outcomes while championing safety, reliability, and