Lead AI Research Engineer

AVEVA is creating software trusted by over 90% of leading industrial companies. Position: LeadAIResearch Engineer Location:  Cambridge, London, Milan, Gallarate, Madrid, Derry, Frankfurt, Malmo, Paris Employment Type: Full-time The job  We are seekinganexperiencedAItechnologistto join our AI Investigation and Incubation team. This is a hands-on engineeringleadrole, focused onresearching, prototyping,andvalidatingemerging AI technologiesto drive innovation andreal-world use cases. The ideal candidate will have a passion forbothexploring new frontiers in AIandturning AI research into working systemswithexpertisemaking architectural trade-offs, and proving feasibility through code, experiments, and deployable prototypes.Astrongtechnical foundation with experience workingat the intersection ofAIresearchandincubationis critical for this role. Key responsibilities Research and evaluate emerging AI technologies with a clear focus on practical applicability anddeployability Investigate, develop, fine-tune, evaluate, and benchmark AI/ML models  Design, build, and iterate on working prototypes,proof-of-concepts, and pilots Assess AI approaches for scalability, reliability, cost, security, and operational feasibility Make and documentAIinvestigationand architectural decisions related to model deployment and integration Drive technical and scientific publications on AI research  Collaborate closely withcross-functionalteams to ensure AIproofs-of-concept, prototypes, and pilotscan transition tolater stage development and/ordownstream products Clearly document findings and present actionable recommendationsto technical andnon-technicalstakeholders Mentorand coach juniorteam members  Essential requirements 10+ years ofexperience inAIresearch and development, MLengineering, orequivalent industry experience with at least 3 years in a technical lead position Bachelor's degree in Computer Science,AI/ML,Engineeringor a related technical field; advanced degree preferred Proventrack recordleading and deliveringlarge-scale technical investigations or complexAIcross-functional initiativeswith measurable outcomes Expertisein Python anddeepexperience withdeep learningframeworks (e.g., Jax,TensorFlow,PyTorch)andstate-of-the-artML techniques(building, training, evaluating, deploying ML models) Practical experience with modern AI paradigmssuch as:world models, foundation models, and multi-modal language models; agent-based systems and orchestration; and context retrieval and augmentation techniques Exceptional communication and presentation skills;can articulate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences, including senior leadership Ability to connect AI capabilities to practical industrial or enterprise use cases Desired skills and competencies Exposure to AI governance, security, or compliance considerations Experience deploying ML models in cloud environments (Azure preferred, AWS acceptable) Familiarity withMLOpspractices (model versioning, evaluation, monitoring, iteration) Experience working with non-ideal, real-world data rather than curated research datasets Exposure to industrial, IoT, manufacturing, energy, or asset-intensive domains Experience working in both enterprise and start up environments What success looks like AIconceptsprogress beyond research into validated, working prototypesand pilots Technical investigations result in clear go / no-go recommendations Prototypesand pilotsdemonstratefeasibility for real-world deployment, not just benchmark performance Strong collaboration withcross-functional technical and non-technicalteams to enable transitioninto later stage development, where appropriate Ability to meaningfullyinfluence AI roadmapsand technology direction through evidence-backed work R&D at AVEVA Our global team of 2000+ developers work on an incredibly diverse portfolio of over 75 industrial automation and engineering products, which cover everything from data management to 3D design. AI and cloud are at the centre of our strategy, and we have over 150 patents to our name. Our track record of innovation is no fluke – it’s the result of a structured and deliberate focus on learning, collaboration and inclusivity. If you want to build applications that solve big problems, join us. Find out more: UK Benefits include: Flexible benefits fund, emergency leave days, adoption leave, 28 days annual leave (plus