At a Glance
- Tasks: Build and optimise machine learning systems for unmanned vehicles in a cutting-edge tech environment.
- Company: Join Minerva Defence, a fast-growing UK defence tech company making an impact on modern battlefields.
- Benefits: Share options, private health cover, generous leave, and support for relocation or home office setup.
- Other info: Dynamic role with opportunities to learn and grow in a supportive environment.
- Why this job: Be part of a small, dedicated team making a real difference with innovative technology.
- Qualifications: Experience in ML pipelines, Python, and backend development; familiarity with large datasets is a plus.
The predicted salary is between 63000 - 77000 £ per year.
As an ML systems engineer with Minerva you will work on the infrastructure and systems required for improving the performance of our machine learning models deployed across our entire fleet of vehicles in operational environments.
Minerva Defence is one of the fastest-growing defence technology companies in Europe. We create the software, hardware and networking that make unmanned systems effective on the modern battlefield, all ideated, designed and manufactured end-to-end in the UK, and in active use today. We are deliberately low-profile: a team of around 60, small in headcount and outsized in effect. We look for people who are not just talented but genuinely committed to the work, the team, and the purpose behind it.
You will work on the infrastructure required to improve our machine learning models running on large quantities of deployed vehicles. You could be responsible for the collection of training data (building the pipelines to securely return data from operational platforms), generation of synthetic data, annotation, training infrastructure, evaluation, optimisation of inference on edge devices or deployment. In many cases, data will comprise of large dumps of images or videos, and you should be comfortable architecting systems to deal with this. We are looking for candidates who can work across the full stack, and who are willing to jump into learning about new areas they are less familiar with if that’s what is needed to get the job done.
Responsibilities
- Build out the infrastructure required to improve the performance of our machine learning models, including dataset curation/labelling, training, evaluation and deployment.
- Ensure model performance is constantly improving, whether that involves building the pipelines to collect operational data, supervising annotation/labelling, generating synthetic data, training models or optimising inference.
Requirements
Minimum:
- Experience with machine learning pipelines, from datasets through to evaluation and deployment (ML Ops)
- Experience with Python
- A solid grounding in backend development
- Experience with handling large datasets (computer vision or otherwise)
Preferred:
- Experience with deep neural nets
- Experience with computer vision
- Experience deploying ML models on edge
- Interest in working with unmanned aircraft
Benefits
The job is demanding enough, so we try to take the everyday pressures off your plate. The benefits are built around that, starting with a genuine stake in what we are building.
- Share options vesting over three years, so you own a real piece of it
- Bupa private health, fully funded from day one
- 6% employer pension contribution
- 25 days leave plus bank holidays, and properly enhanced cover for both parents
- Enterprise level AI tooling, with as many tokens as you need to accelerate your work
- Relocation support if you are moving to join us, or a home office budget if you work remotely
The full detail comes with your offer.
Machine Learning Systems Engineer in London employer: Minerva Defence
Minerva Defence is an exceptional employer, offering a unique opportunity to work closely with customers in operational environments, ensuring that your contributions have a direct impact on the effectiveness of unmanned systems in the field. With a strong focus on employee well-being, we provide generous benefits including share options, private health care, and a supportive work culture that values autonomy and collaboration. Our commitment to professional growth is evident through access to enterprise-level AI tools and relocation support, making this a rewarding place for engineers who are passionate about their work and the mission behind it.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Machine Learning Systems Engineer in London
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Minerva Defence or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
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✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
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✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
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We think you need these skills to ace Machine Learning Systems Engineer in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Minerva Defence.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Minerva Defence and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at Minerva Defence
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Minerva Defence uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.