At a Glance
- Tasks: Own and architect data infrastructure for a fast-growing AI company.
- Company: Dynamic AI startup in London with strong backing and paying customers.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, ownership from day one, and opportunity to shape the future.
- Other info: Ground floor opportunity with potential for significant career growth.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by building scalable data systems in a thriving environment.
- Qualifications: 7+ years in data engineering, strong Python and SQL skills required.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.
I'm working with a fast-growing AI company in London who are looking for their first senior data hire a Lead Data Engineer to own and architect their data infrastructure from the ground up. You'd be coming in with real ownership from day one, working directly with the founders and core engineering team. The company is already live with paying customers, backed by experienced investors, and scaling fast.
What you'll be building:
- Scalable data pipelines and ingestion architecture for both operational and AI workloads
- Batch and real-time data processing systems at scale
- Vector search and retrieval systems powering AI features
- ML data pipelines supporting model training and inference
- Monitoring, observability and data quality frameworks
- The foundations of a future data engineering team
What they're looking for:
- 7+ years in data engineering or backend engineering
- Strong Python and SQL fundamentals
- PostgreSQL and NoSQL database experience
- Hands-on experience with vector databases (Qdrant, Milvus, pgvector or similar)
- Familiarity with Spark, Airflow, Kafka or Elasticsearch is a plus
- Cloud experience across GCP, AWS or Azure
- Someone who has built greenfield data systems and thrives in fast-moving environments
- Startup experience or a genuine appetite for it
Why this role stands out: This is a ground floor opportunity at an AI company with real product-market fit, strong backing, and a clear path to scale. You'd be shaping architecture decisions that will define how the platform operates for years to come.
Lead Data Engineer employer: Arrows
Arrows is an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and collaborative work culture, perfect for those passionate about media technology. With a strong emphasis on employee growth, we offer numerous opportunities for professional development and advancement, all while working in a vibrant location that encourages innovation and creativity. Join us to lead impactful projects and make a meaningful contribution in the broadcasting sector.
