At a Glance
- Tasks: Build and ship AI systems in real-world environments, tackling complex business challenges.
- Company: Join a leading tech consultancy focused on digital transformation and AI adoption.
- Benefits: Competitive pay, hybrid work model, and opportunities for contract extensions.
- Other info: Collaborate with a dynamic team and grow your career in a fast-paced environment.
- Why this job: Make a tangible impact by delivering AI solutions that truly work in enterprises.
- Qualifications: Strong back-end development skills and experience with large language models.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.
Who we are: Blackstone are a technical consultancy who specialise in digital transformation and complex technical deliveries. 15 years ago that meant Cloud adoption. 10 years ago it was DevOps. 5 years ago, SRE and platform engineering. We still cover all of that, but a lot of our work right now is AI adoption. And we mean actual AI adoption in production in Enterprises.
The pace and impact of each wave keeps accelerating, but we think successful adoption still comes down to two things: people and constraints. What does transformation actually look like inside the limits of an organisation, and how do we bring the people along for it?
The role: This is a hands-on contract embedded in live customer delivery. You'll build and ship AI systems in complex, high-stakes environments, not run proof-of-concepts that quietly die before they reach production. From the architecture of RAG pipelines to the evaluation harnesses that prove they work, the work is yours to own.
You'll work closely with delivery managers, solution architects and client stakeholders, turning real business problems into AI that does the job. You'll bring engineering discipline to a space that often lacks it, and help shape how we deliver AI at scale.
What we're looking for:
- Solid back-end development. You write clean, production-grade code that other people can maintain, test and build on.
- Real experience building and running evaluation harnesses to measure LLM performance, output quality and regression.
- A deep, working understanding of large language models: how they behave, where they break, and how to engineer around it.
- Proven RAG experience, including chunking, embedding choices and retrieval tuning.
- Enterprise client exposure. You're comfortable in complex stakeholder environments with governance, compliance and security in the mix.
- Hands-on with Azure AI Foundry or equivalent Azure AI services, covering deployment, monitoring and integration.
- Strong context engineering, designing prompts and context windows that are robust and repeatable.
- A systematic approach to prompting. You test, iterate and document rather than guess.
Nice to have:
- Production AI agents: tool use, memory, and orchestration with the likes of LangChain, Semantic Kernel or AutoGen.
- Familiarity with agentic design patterns, including multi-step reasoning, planning loops and safe agent behaviour in regulated settings.
- Fine-tuning or model adaptation for domain-specific use cases.
The details: £competitive, Outside IR35, Hybrid, a mix of remote and on-site with the client as the engagement requires. Negotiable. 6 months to start, with extensions expected based on performance and how the project develops. Start date to be agreed, though we'd like to move quickly for the right person.
If you take engineering seriously, stay curious about AI without losing your scepticism, and like the idea of your work being visible in a small team, we'd like to hear from you.
AI Engineer - Contract - Remote (UK Based) in Slough employer: Blackstone& London
At Blackstone&, we pride ourselves on being a forward-thinking technical consultancy that champions digital transformation, particularly in the realm of AI adoption. Our collaborative work culture fosters innovation and encourages continuous learning, providing employees with ample opportunities for professional growth while working on impactful projects in complex environments. With a competitive contract structure and a hybrid work model, we ensure that our team members can thrive both remotely and on-site, making meaningful contributions to enterprise-level AI solutions.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land AI Engineer - Contract - Remote (UK Based) in Slough
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in the industry, attend meetups, and connect with potential colleagues on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can refer you directly.
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio showcasing your AI projects, especially those that demonstrate your experience with large language models and RAG pipelines. This will give you an edge when chatting with potential employers.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by brushing up on your technical knowledge and soft skills. Be ready to discuss your hands-on experience with Azure AI services and how you've tackled real-world problems in previous roles.
✨Tip Number 4
Apply through our website! We love seeing candidates who are genuinely interested in joining our team. Plus, it gives you a chance to showcase your enthusiasm for AI adoption and digital transformation right from the start.
We think you need these skills to ace AI Engineer - Contract - Remote (UK Based) in Slough
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Skills:When you're writing your application, make sure to highlight your back-end development experience and any hands-on work with AI systems. We want to see how you've tackled real-world problems and the impact of your contributions.
Be Specific About Your Experience:Don't just list your skills; give us examples! Talk about your experience with large language models and RAG pipelines. The more specific you are, the better we can understand how you fit into our team.
Keep It Professional Yet Personal:While we love a friendly tone, remember that this is a professional application. Balance your personality with professionalism to show us you're serious about the role but also a great fit for our culture.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you don’t miss out on any important updates from us!
How to prepare for a job interview at Blackstone& London
✨Know Your AI Stuff
Make sure you brush up on your knowledge of large language models and RAG pipelines. Be ready to discuss how they work, where they can fail, and how you've tackled these challenges in the past. This will show that you're not just familiar with the theory but have real-world experience.
✨Showcase Your Coding Skills
Prepare to demonstrate your back-end development skills. Bring examples of clean, production-grade code you've written, and be ready to explain your thought process behind it. This is your chance to prove you can write maintainable code that others can build on.
✨Understand the Client Environment
Familiarise yourself with the complexities of working in enterprise environments. Be prepared to discuss how you've navigated governance, compliance, and security issues in previous roles. This will help you connect with the interviewers and show that you can handle their specific challenges.
✨Be Ready to Discuss Your Approach
Have a systematic approach to prompting and context engineering ready to share. Talk about how you test, iterate, and document your processes. This will demonstrate your engineering discipline and your ability to deliver AI solutions at scale.
