Head of Research

Head of Research
Central London (4-5 days per week in office)
£130,000 - £180,000 + Equity + Bi-Annual Salary Reviews + Annual Performance-Based Equity Refresh

Are you an accomplished AI Research or Machine Learning leader looking to build and lead a research function from the ground up, while remaining hands-on with cutting-edge LLMs, vision models and agentic systems solving complex, real-world problems within a highly regulated industry?

This is a rare opportunity to take ownership of the AI research strategy within an ambitious early-stage technology business, where model quality, accuracy and explainability are fundamental to the product.

You will set the research roadmap, build and develop a high-performing research team and lead the most technically challenging work. This will include model training and fine-tuning, agentic systems, evaluation infrastructure, distillation, failure analysis and continuous improvement using real-world feedback. While leadership remains a crucial aspect of the role, this specific position would suit someone looking to remain hands-on and work alongside the team on future developments.

The ideal candidate will have significant applied AI research or ML engineering experience, alongside proven leadership experience taking research through to production. You will combine deep technical capability with strong research judgement and the ability to communicate complex concepts effectively across engineering, product, commercial teams and customers.

The Role:

• Own the AI research strategy, roadmap and build-vs-adapt decisions.
• Build, lead and develop a team of AI researchers and engineers.
• Lead hands-on development across LLMs, vision models and agentic systems.
• Own evaluation, benchmarking, model quality and continuous improvement.
• Partner with product, engineering and commercial teams to deliver research into production.

The Person:

• 5+ years' applied AI research or ML engineering experience.
• Proven experience leading technical teams and research through to production.
• Hands-on expertise with LLM/vision model training, fine-tuning, agents and evaluation.
• Strong understanding of model quality, benchmarking and production ML systems.
• Excellent research judgement, ownership and communication skills.

Reference Number: BBBH280473

Rise Technical Recruitment Ltd acts an employment agency for permanent roles and an employment business for temporary roles.

The salary advertised is the bracket available for this position. The actual salary paid will be dependent on your level of experience, qualifications and skill set and will be decided by our client, the employer. Rise are not responsible or liable for any hiring decisions made by the end client.

We are an equal opportunities company and welcome applications from all suitable candidates.