Sr.Backend/ Tech Lead, RAG & Knowledge Ingestion in London

Sr.Backend/ Tech Lead, RAG & Knowledge Ingestion in London

London Full-Time 72000 - 88000 £ / year (est.) No working from home possible
Unique

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead the development of a secure AI platform for the financial sector.
  • Company: Join Unique AI, a pioneer in generative AI for finance.
  • Benefits: Inclusive environment, competitive salary, and opportunities for professional growth.
  • Other info: Hands-on leadership role with a focus on mentoring and technical direction.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact by revolutionising the financial industry with cutting-edge technology.
  • Qualifications: 7+ years in backend engineering, expertise in TypeScript and Node.js required.

The predicted salary is between 72000 - 88000 £ per year.

Defining how AI and finance work together — securely, intelligently, and at scale. We at Unique AI are building a highly secure generative AI platform, tailored for the financial sector. Utilizing AI, LLM, agentic and Skills technologies, we aim to revolutionize the Financial industry with an AI Automated workforce. Our mission is to increase efficiency, improve alpha, reduce risk, and increase quality across everything we do. We offer an inclusive environment at Unique and we encourage all genders and all neuro-diversities to apply.

We're building an enterprise AI platform where knowledge ingestion is a foundational capability. It is how customer documents, files, and unstructured data enter the system so that AI assistants can search, retrieve, and reason over it. We're looking for a backend-focused tech lead to own the technical direction of this platform end to end. This is a hands-on technical leadership role. You will set architecture, guide implementation across the core ingestion services, mentor engineers through design and code review, and drive improvements in reliability, throughput, retrieval quality, and maintainability.

Requirements

  • 7+ years of backend engineering experience with strong expertise in TypeScript and Node.js
  • Experience as a technical lead for a backend or platform domain, with ownership of architecture, technical direction, and mentoring
  • Strong experience building ingestion or unstructured data pipelines, ideally involving document parsing across formats such as PDF, Office documents, HTML, or email
  • Strong database, indexing, and retrieval experience across PostgreSQL, Elasticsearch, Qdrant, or similar systems
  • Experience improving retrieval quality in production using embeddings, vector search, or RAG-style retrieval systems
  • System design maturity: you can design for scale, failure handling, service boundaries, and pragmatic trade-offs under real constraints
  • Multi-tenant SaaS experience: you understand data isolation, tenant-scoped processing, and enterprise security requirements

Sr.Backend/ Tech Lead, RAG & Knowledge Ingestion in London employer: Unique

Unique in London is an exceptional employer that fosters a culture of innovation and continuous learning, making it an ideal place for a Senior Backend Engineer to thrive. With a focus on building cutting-edge generative AI platforms for financial services, employees benefit from a collaborative work environment, ample opportunities for professional growth, and the chance to contribute to impactful projects. The hybrid work model further enhances work-life balance, allowing team members to excel both personally and professionally.

Unique

Contact Details:

Unique Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Sr.Backend/ Tech Lead, RAG & Knowledge Ingestion 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 Unique 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

Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Unique.

Tap into Online Developer Communities

Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Unique.

Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles

Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Unique that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!

We think you need these skills to ace Sr.Backend/ Tech Lead, RAG & Knowledge Ingestion in London

Backend Engineering
TypeScript
Node.js
Technical Leadership
Architecture Design
Mentoring
Ingestion Pipelines

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 Unique.

Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Unique 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 Unique

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 Unique 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.