AI Engineering Lead

Akixi; Nottingham; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading SaaS analytics provider in the UK is looking for an AI Engineering Lead to drive their AI and ML strategy. This role involves leading the definition and delivery of AI initiatives, creating scalable solutions, and integrating AI components like chatbots and ML models. Ideal candidates should have a background in software engineering focused on AI, strong programming skills in Python, and experience with AI frameworks. Join a collaborative culture with hybrid work flexibility and contribute to impactful AI projects.

Benefits

Collaborative culture

Hybrid flexibility

Innovative projects

Qualifications

• 4+ years in software engineering with AI/ML focus.
• Proven expertise in AI solutions integration.
• Strong proficiency in Python preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead AI strategy and technology roadmap implementation.
• Architect scalable AI solutions for the platform.
• Develop and integrate AI-driven components.

Skills

Software Engineering

AI/ML Expertise

Python

AI Frameworks

Problem Solving

Education

Advanced degree in AI, ML, Data Science

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

Azure OpenAI

AWS

Docker

Job description

Location

• Remote, but requirement to meet up once a month for in‑person collaboration day
• UK based

About Akixi

Akixi is a leading provider of SaaS analytics solutions for cloud‑based communication platforms, helping service providers and enterprises gain actionable insights from their telephony and collaboration data. Our solutions span Microsoft Teams, Cisco BroadWorks, Webex Calling, and CRM integrations — delivering real‑time and historical analytics that improve customer experience and business performance.

We are expanding our platform to include advanced AI capabilities — voice and chat assistants, intelligent analytics, and predictive insights — and are seeking an AI Engineering Lead to define and deliver this vision.

Job Summary & Purpose

Own and drive Akixi’s AI and ML strategy — from concept and architecture through hands‑on prototyping and deployment — to embed intelligence into Akixi’s products and analytics platforms.

As the AI Engineering Lead, you will define and execute Akixi’s AI roadmap, combining leadership of architecture and engineering practice with hands‑on development of prototypes and production features. You’ll partner with Product, Data, and Platform Engineering to design and integrate AI‑driven capabilities such as voice/chatbots, natural‑language analytics, and predictive models. This role balances strategic technical direction with hands‑on implementation, ensuring Akixi’s AI initiatives deliver tangible business and customer outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the definition and delivery of Akixi’s AI strategy and technology roadmap.
• Architect scalable AI solutions integrated into Akixi’s SaaS analytics platform.
• Prototype, develop, and integrate AI‑driven components such as chatbots, voice assistants, ML models, and LLM‑based analytics.
• Apply prompt engineering and model‑tuning techniques to optimize chatbot and LLM behaviour.
• Conduct research, proof‑of‑concepts, and feasibility studies for emerging AI technologies.
• Collaborate with Product Management to scope AI features and align them with business goals.
• Partner with Data Engineering to operationalize models, manage training data, and implement monitoring and retraining pipelines.
• Work closely with Development, DevOps, and QA teams to ensure smooth CI/CD integration and deployment of AI components.
• Establish standards for AI code quality, ethics, and data governance.
• Mentor engineers working on AI‑related projects, fostering technical excellence and innovation.
• Evaluate external AI vendors, tools, and frameworks for adoption or integration.
• Stay ahead of developments in AI/ML, LLMs, and applied analytics, translating trends into practical opportunities for Akixi.

Required Skills & Experience

• 4+ years in software engineering, with at least 3+ years focused on AI/ML or data‑driven product development.
• Proven expertise in developing and integrating AI solutions such as chatbots, voicebots, ML models, or LLM‑based analytics.
• Strong proficiency in Python (preferred) and/or JavaScript/TypeScript.
• Hands‑on experience with AI frameworks (TensorFlow, PyTorch, LangChain) and LLM APIs (Azure OpenAI, OpenAI API, Anthropic, AWS Bedrock).
• Experience with Microsoft Bot Framework, Dialogflow, or similar conversational‑AI platforms.
• Deep understanding of prompt engineering and fine‑tuning of large language models.
• Strong grounding in ML concepts — supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning.
• Familiarity with cloud AI/ML services (Azure Cognitive Services, AWS SageMaker, GCP Vertex AI).
• Experience deploying and monitoring AI workloads in CI/CD environments (Jenkins, Docker, Kubernetes, AWS).
• Ability to design data pipelines, APIs, and microservice integrations supporting AI features.
• Excellent problem‑solving, communication, and cross‑team collaboration skills.
• Proven ability to lead technically while remaining hands‑on in design and coding.

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Experience with call/contact‑centre analytics, Microsoft Teams Graph API, or telephony platforms (BroadWorks, Webex Calling).
• Knowledge of data governance, model ethics, and MLOps practices.
• Exposure to data visualization and predictive analytics for customer‑experience metrics.
• Advanced degree in AI, ML, Data Science, or related discipline.
• ISTQB AI Testing or equivalent certification.

Why Akixi

At Akixi, you’ll play a pivotal role in transforming how businesses understand and act on communication data. You’ll define and deliver the intelligence layer of a platform used by thousands worldwide — in an environment that values innovation, experimentation, and technical depth. We offer a collaborative culture, hybrid flexibility, and the opportunity to lead meaningful, high‑impact AI initiatives from vision to production.