Applied AI Engineer

The Gym Limited; London Borough of Wandsworth; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

The Gym Group is seeking an Applied AI Engineer to design and deploy production AI solutions that reshape how teams operate and how members experience fitness. You will ship code, collaborate with product engineers and own features from prototype to production in a hands-on capacity.

As the first dedicated AI engineer, you will work across the business, partnering with AI Platform, security and data teams to ensure responsible use of AI, with a focus on measurable impact and scalable playbooks.

Qualifications

• Practical experience building applied AI solutions with large language models, including retrieval-augmented generation, agents and workflow automation.
• Production software end-to-end ownership and deployment responsibilities.
• Experience with LLM APIs, prompt/context engineering, vector search and agent workflows with human oversight.
• Secure cloud-based solutions with CI/CD pipelines and data access controls.
• Ability to turn ambiguous problems into scoped, working solutions with non-technical stakeholders.
• Proficient in Python; working knowledge of at least one additional language.
• Experience integrating APIs and data sources into business processes.
• Observability and impact measurements for AI in production.
• Collaborative, low-ego approach and coaching others to sustain capability.

Responsibilities

• Designing and building production-ready agents, copilots and workflow automations that integrate with existing systems, data and processes.
• Embedding with business and product teams to identify, scope and deliver high-value AI solutions from prototype to production, with clear success measures and handover points.
• Contributing AI-enabled features to member-facing products alongside Product Engineers, owning deployment and incident response.
• Evaluating and monitoring AI solutions in production and reporting impact including cost and error rates.
• Coaching team members and creating reusable playbooks and standards shared across the business.
• Working daily with the AI Platform Engineer and leads to use approved models and tooling, contributing reusable platform components.
• Maintaining human oversight and accountability, collaborating with Information Security and Data Protection.

Skills

LLM experience

Production software

Python proficiency

Cloud & CI/CD

Agent workflows

Vector search

Observability

APIs integration

Stakeholder collaboration

Tools

LLM APIs

CI/CD tooling

Python ecosystem

APIs tooling

Job description

Role: Applied AI Engineer Location: Hybrid (3 days per week in Clapham Junction) We're The Gym Group... We're one of the UK's leading fitness businesses. With more than one million members, 265+ gyms and ambitious plans to keep growing, we're the UK's second-largest gym operator by membership and the fourth largest in Europe. Our mission is simple: to break down barriers to fitness for all. We're large enough to make a meaningful difference, but agile enough for individuals to influence how we grow. Technology, data and new ideas play a central role - and you'll have the opportunity to take ownership, challenge how things are done and see the impact of your work. Just as importantly, we're a people-first business where everyone is encouraged to be themselves. We've been named one of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work and awarded Investors in People Gold, alongside a host of other awards recognising our culture and our people.

About the role

This is a rare opportunity to be the first dedicated Applied AI Engineer at The Gym Group - a role with real scope, real ownership and real impact. You will build production AI solutions that change how our teams work and how our members experience fitness, working across the business as a hands-on engineer who ships code, not just ideas. If you want to shape how a major UK business adopts AI from the inside, this is the role.

What you'll be doing

• Designing and building production-ready agents, copilots and workflow automations that integrate with our existing systems, data and processes.
• Embedding with business and product teams to identify, scope and deliver high-value AI solutions from prototype to production, with clear measures of success and defined handover points.
• Contributing AI-enabled features to member-facing products alongside our Product Engineers, owning your work through deployment and incidents.
• Evaluating and monitoring AI solutions in production and reporting impact honestly - including cost, error rates and what did not work.
• Coaching team members while building real solutions so that capability stays with the team after each engagement, and creating reusable playbooks and standards shared across the business.
• Working daily with the AI Platform Engineer, Tech Leads, Product Leads and AI Ambassadors to use approved models and tooling and contribute reusable components back to the platform.
• Keeping human oversight and clear accountability at the centre of every solution, working with Information Security and Data Protection throughout.

What we're looking for

• Practical experience building applied AI solutions with large language models, including retrieval-augmented generation, agents and workflow automation.
• Substantial experience building and deploying production software end-to-end, owning outcomes through deployment and support.
• Hands-on experience with LLM APIs, prompt and context engineering, retrieval and vector search, and agent workflows involving tool use and human oversight.
• Experience building and deploying secure solutions using cloud infrastructure, CI/CD and appropriate controls for data access.
• Experience working directly with non-technical stakeholders to turn ambiguous problems into scoped, working solutions.
• Proficiency in Python as a primary production language, with working knowledge of at least one additional language.
• Experience integrating APIs, systems and data sources into existing business processes in real-world environments.
• Experience evaluating and monitoring AI solutions in production, including observability and impact measurement.
• A collaborative, low-ego approach and evidence of coaching others so that technical capability stays with the team.

Diversity & Inclusion

We also want to put it out there that we actively encourage applications from a diverse demographic and we are passionate about your culture and value alignment. We want this to be a match that works for you as much as for us!

We are also recognised as a disability confident and inclusive employer which is something we are truly proud of.

Company culture & values

We may be one of the leading budget gym chains in the UK but there's nothing budget about our investment into our people.

We have retained GOLD in our Investors in People award for the last 6 years and were awarded silver in wellbeing last year.

We're #1 in our industry when it comes to our values, our culture and our people - check out Glassdoor if you don't believe us.

We have a brilliant team and opportunities for development and growth with support for success.

We don't want to stand still, we're growing, innovating and adapting, we're with you to reach your career goals too.

Privacy & data processing

Your application may be reviewed by an AI tool to help assess your suitability based on the information you provide. Automated decision-making is never used - every application is reviewed and all decisions, including whether to progress your application, are made exclusively by a member of our recruitment team. Your data will be handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy and UK GDPR.

Let us just say, we are so pleased that you are checking us out... we know that we are a great place to work but we would love to help you see that. You can really be YOU with us... whatever your career journey - we're with you.