Senior Machine Learning Engineer (Defence)

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• Location: Newcastle upon Tyne
• Security clearance: must be eligible for UK SC-level security clearance (UK national)
• Visa sponsorship: we are not able to sponsor visas for this role
• Closing date: applications reviewed on a rolling basis

About Neptune North

Neptune North is a high-performing technical consultancy. We build data, AI and software solutions for clients in defence, financial services and private capital, working on demanding problems in challenging environments.

We were founded in 2024 as a joint venture between Oliver Wyman and Rokos Capital Management. We’re headquartered in the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne, with a growing international footprint, and we’re recruiting exceptional engineers across every level.

The role

We’re looking for a Senior Machine Learning Engineer to deliver machine learning applications for defence and to help provide technical oversight to a new and rapidly growing team. You will help lead, define and strengthen the applied AI capabilities that differentiate Neptune North and build a trusted reputation across defence clients. Potential projects might include fully engineered solutions, Proof of Concepts (POCs), and applied research to support future defence-relevant capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Influence the technical direction and play a key role in strengthening Neptune North’s machine learning and data science capabilities
• Provide leadership/hands-on delivery in a wide range of machine learning and AI projects
• Work directly with clients to shape requirements, manage expectations, and to build trust
• Contribute to winning work by helping to write compelling bids and high-quality technical proposals
• Advocate knowledge sharing across the team and identify opportunities for reuse of capabilities
• Regularly provide career and technical mentorship to other engineers to build a high calibre team
• Demonstrate flexibility in taking on work aligned to evolving company priorities

What makes a great candidate

You don't need to meet every requirement to apply . If this role excites you, we'd like to hear from you.

Senior Machine Learning Engineer

• Minimum 5 years employment experience delivering and/or overseeing AI/machine learning projects
• Experience across multiple areas of machine learning, such as unstructured data (e.g. image, audio), time series forecasting, reinforcement learning, few shot
• A strong grounding in the maths and statistics behind machine learning
• Hands on experience training, evaluating and tuning deep learning models using frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow
• A solid grasp of model evaluation, including choosing the right metrics, diagnosing overfitting, and designing sound validation strategies
• Experience taking models from experimentation into production, including deployment and retraining
• Experience optimising models for constrained hardware: edge, embedded or very low power devices
• Knowledge of model explainability, AI safety, AI security or fairness

General

• Strong programming skills, typically in Python, with the flexibility to pick up other modern languages
• A solid grounding in software engineering best practices and a commitment to maintain high engineering standards in all your work
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to adapt communication according to the audience
• Ability to work effectively with ambiguity, while maintaining a disciplined, outcome-focused approach
• Experience leading teams, with enthusiasm for sharing knowledge and collaborating
• Strong academic foundations, typically a first-class from a leading university in Computer Science, Mathematics, AI, or a data related discipline
• Experience in defence or national security is a strong plus

What you can achieve

• Shape data science and machine learning solutions that strengthen UK defence and national security
• Play a critical role in building and nurturing a rapidly expanding team
• Gain broad experience across interesting machine learning challenges applied to challenging environments
• Contribute to meaningful technical decisions as part of a collaborative, low-ego engineering team

Why join us

• Work on a wide variety of interesting problems alongside high-calibre colleagues. Our culture is collaborative and supportive. Neptune North is a place where people help each other grow and feel a real sense of belonging
• 25 days’ holiday allowance plus bank holidays
• Matching pension contributions up to 6%
• Private health insurance through Bupa
• Discretionary bonus

Travel

Neptune North works with clients across the UK’s defence sector. Many engagements involve regular travel and time on client site. This could mean two to three days per week over an entire assignment, or shorter periods of full-time on-site working anywhere in the UK, at sites including Cheltenham, Bristol, Glasgow, Portsmouth or other defence hubs. We support travelling staff with full expenses and hotel arrangements, and we discuss client placements with you in advance. We are looking for engineers who see this variety as part of the appeal of consultancy work rather than a downside.

Interview process

Our interview process is rigorous because the standard internally is high. For this role, it has three stages

• Written questions, which you complete at a time that suits you
• A first interview covering your CV, experience and career aspirations
• A technical interview with members of our engineering team

Equity, diversity and inclusion

At Neptune North we are committed to a work environment that embraces diversity, equity and inclusion. We believe diverse backgrounds, perspectives and experiences help us attract, develop and retain the best talent. We do not discriminate based on gender, age, race or ethnicity, identification as an LGBTQIA+ individual, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by relevant local law.