At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead AI projects, design data pipelines, and collaborate with diverse teams to innovate.
- Company: Join the BBC, a trusted public broadcaster committed to innovation and responsibility.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, flexible working hours, and excellent career development opportunities.
- Other info: Be part of a diverse team that values inclusion and personal growth.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in AI transformation at one of the world's leading media organisations.
- Qualifications: Experience in AI workflows, strong Python skills, and a collaborative mindset are essential.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 90000 £ per year.
JOB BAND: E
CONTRACT TYPE: Permanent, Full-time
DEPARTMENT: BBC Media Technology
LOCATION: Salford
PROPOSED SALARY RANGE: £80,000 - £90,000 depending on relevant skills, knowledge and experience.
PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
The Lead AI Engineer (Gen AI) will help the BBC make practical use of AI tools and systems to solve business problems and help our internal teams work effectively and efficiently. The role will collaborate closely with project managers, data scientists, analysts, domain experts, and the BBC's technical teams to build the data pipelines and technical solutions that enable AI projects to move effectively through piloting to successful handover to the business for scaling.
WHY JOIN THE TEAM
These roles will sit within BBC Media Technology and be embedded within the BBC’s Strategy and Transformation team, focusing on Gen AI transformation. The Generative AI Team helps the BBC realise value from rapidly evolving AI capabilities in a way that is practical, responsible and aligned to the BBC’s public service mission. The team’s activities include enabling adoption of AI tools across the organisation; leading innovation and transformation work; and leading the BBC's engagement on the wider AI issues that shape our operating environment. The work we do makes the most of AI to deliver value for the BBC’s teams and audiences. The challenges are new and exciting, and you'll have real influence over how one of the world's most trusted public broadcasters adopts AI in a way that is practical, responsible and true to its values.
YOUR KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPACT
- Develop secure, reliable and well-designed solutions that support high-quality AI piloting and transition to successful handover to the business for scaling.
- Design and build robust data pipelines, models and supporting data structures that enable AI projects to move effectively from piloting to successful handover into the business for scaling.
- Work closely with data scientists, analysts, project managers, business partners, researchers and designers to understand requirements and translate them into valuable solutions.
- Establish and promote strong engineering practices for data quality, resilience, maintainability and operational performance across the team’s work.
- Help shape data approaches to architecture, integration and pilot design, ensuring solutions are appropriate for AI experimentation and future scaling.
- Provide technical leadership to other engineers, mentoring, code review and setting standards, contributing to a culture of learning and continuous improvement.
- Ensure data used within AI projects is managed in line with the BBC’s organisational values, security requirements and responsible approach to AI.
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
- Significant experience of designing and delivering LLM-based workflows or applications, including pipelines, models and platform components, with the engineering discipline to build secure, resilient and maintainable systems in complex organisational environments.
- Strong engineering practices including proficiency in Python and demonstrable use of AI-assisted development tools to improve code quality and delivery pace.
- Significant hands‑on experience with cloud platforms and infrastructure (AWS preferred) – including Infrastructure as Code; container and orchestration tools (e.g. Docker, Kubernetes); API development frameworks (FastAPI or equivalent).
- Experience of working collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams, translating a range of user, product and research needs into practical engineering solutions.
- Demonstrable experience of providing technical leadership to other engineers, mentoring, reviewing code, setting standards and improving engineering practices.
- Good understanding of data governance, security and quality considerations, with the judgement to apply these appropriately in innovative or experimental contexts.
- Experience working in broadcast, media, start‑up or research environments.
- Contributions to published technical documents or thought leadership in your area of expertise.
- Experience building with Generative AI frameworks (e.g. LangChain, LangGraph, PydanticAI) and managed AI services (e.g. Bedrock, Azure).
Lead AI Engineer in Salford employer: BBC Group and Public Services
At BBC Studios, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and inclusive work culture in the heart of London. With competitive salaries, generous bonuses, and a commitment to employee growth, we empower our team to drive innovation and creativity in the media landscape. Join us to collaborate with industry leaders, develop your skills, and contribute to world-class commercial products that engage global audiences.
Contact Details:
BBC Group and Public Services Recruitment Team
