{"id":445471,"url":"https://alion.io/job/zaizi-machine-learning-engineer-ai-sfia-3","title":"Machine Learning Engineer, AI (SFIA 3)","company":{"id":172541,"name":"Zaizi","domain":"zaizi.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/zaizi","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Workable","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":91,"open_postings":14,"ghost_share":0.071,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":171,"computed_at":"2026-10-29T05:49:05Z"}},"role":"AI/ML","role_family":"AI/ML","seniority":null,"employment_type":null,"work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Cheltenham, United Kingdom"],"countries":["GB"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":61000,"max_usd":163000,"period":"year","method":"role_country_seniority_unknown","sample_n":168},"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":true,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Docker","optional":false},{"name":"Git","optional":false},{"name":"Machine Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"PyTorch","optional":false},{"name":"Agile","optional":true},{"name":"AWS","optional":true},{"name":"Azure","optional":true},{"name":"C++","optional":true},{"name":"GCP","optional":true},{"name":"JavaScript","optional":true},{"name":"React.js","optional":true},{"name":"Rust","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-07-20T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-07-20","last_verified_at":"2026-10-29T22:19:35Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":101,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":0,"flags":["company_stale"],"days_open":101},"description":"Work on exciting public sector projects and make a positive difference in people’s lives. At Zaizi, we thrive on solving complex challenges through creative thinking and the latest tools and tech.\nAs a Machine Learning Engineer, you’ll research machine learning models and evaluate how they can be applied within our specialist domain, working with a small team who deliver AI capabilities for the UK government. You'll be curious about all flavours of AI from classical ML to the latest generative and adversarial techniques and keen to keep learning as the field moves. You'll bring a general understanding of software engineering alongside your ML knowledge and enjoy research, experimenting with new approaches and figuring out how they translate into practical capability for our customers. You'll work closely with a small, high-performing team of engineers and researchers, contributing ideas and picking up new skills as you go.\nOur work culture is inclusive, modern, friendly, and democratic. We look for bright, positive thinking individuals with a can do attitude and a genuine appetite for learning. Our people enjoy challenging themselves to be the best at what they do, if that sounds like you, you'll fit right in! And the work itself matters: you'll be helping to keep the UK safe.\nRequirements\nThese are the expected objectives for this role. We are happy to discuss this further during the interview process with the successful candidate.\nModel Research & Evaluation: Research emerging machine learning models and techniques, and assess how they could be applied within our specialist domain.\nApplied AI Research: Turn research into practical proofs of concept, exploring generative, adversarial and other AI approaches.\nDomain Application: Work with the team to understand our customers problems in depth and translate ML capability into solutions that fit their specialist domain.\nContinuous Learning: Keep pace with the fast moving field of AI building knowledge across different model types and techniques and sharing what you learn with the team.\nCore Competencies\nResearch Skills: Comfortable reading and evaluating ML research and translating findings into practical ideas worth testing.\nTechnology Implementation: Ability to evaluate new AI technologies generative, adversarial or otherwise for relevance and feasibility within the UK Government Domain.\nAdvanced Prototyping: Ability to build proof of concept applications that bridge the gap between initial research and real-world application.\nSpecialist Advice: Keen to grow into a technical resource for the practical application of AI within the organisation, sharing knowledge as your expertise builds.\nData Science: Applying data science techniques to support model research, evaluation, and refinement.\nTeam Fit: A quick learner who's easy to work with, and will slot naturally into a close-knit, high-performing team.\nRequired Skills\nTechnical Expertise: Solid understanding of machine learning algorithms and frameworks with a general grounding in software engineering practices and a genuine curiosity about how ML models work.\nPython: Strong proficiency and hands-on programming experience in Python are required. \nML Frameworks: Practical experience working with machine learning frameworks (e.g. Pytorch) to build, train, evaluate, and deploy models.\nVersion Control: Proficiency with Git for version control and collaborative development is required.\nContainerisation: Familiarity with Docker is required to package, deploy, and run applications across environments.\nAdditional / Welcome Skills (nice to have)\nFrontend Development: Experience with frontend technologies, specifically JavaScript and React, to help build interactive user interfaces for our prototypes.\nCloud Services: Experience working with cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP).\nSystems/Backend Languages: Familiarity with other languages used for high-performance backend or ML workloads, such as Rust or C++.\nYou don’t meet all the requirements?\nStudies show that women and black, Asian and minority ethics people are less likely to apply for a job unless they meet every qualification. So if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with the job description, we’d love you to still apply. You might just be the perfect person for this role, or another role here at Zaizi.\nWe actively welcome applications from people of colour, the LGBTQ+ community, individuals with disabilities, neurodivergent individuals, parents, carers, and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds.\nIf you need any accommodations to support your specific situation, please feel free to let us know. For candidates who are neurodiverse or have disabilities, we are happy to make any adjustments needed throughout the interview process-just ask!\nSC Clearance:\n\nZaizi works with UK Central Government departments on a range of projects. To be able to work on our customer projects, employees must be Security Cleared to a standard acceptable to our Government customers. Due to this restriction we can currently only recruit candidates who have the right to work in the UK without sponsorship and who have lived in the UK for the last 5+ years continuously.\nUp to: £60,000\nBenefits\nCompensation\nCompetitive Pay: Salaries reviewed annually to ensure they reflect your performance and market value.\nLoyalty Pension: We invest in your future. Starting at a 5% employer contribution, we increase this by 0.5% every year after your third anniversary, up to a maximum of 8%.\nProtection: Comprehensive Group Life Assurance for peace of mind.\nPurpose & Culture\nReal Impact: Work on mission-critical projects that secure and improve the UK's digital infrastructure.\nAutonomy: A culture that empowers you to make decisions, prototype rapidly, and iterate towards success.\nService & Community: We support those who serve. 10 paid days for Reservist Military Service.\nWork / Life Balance\nTime Off: 25 days annual leave + Bank Holidays, with the flexibility to Buy/Sell additional days to suit your lifestyle.\nGiving back: 2 paid volunteering days per year.\nDevelopment & Growth\n Master Your Craft: Fully funded professional certifications (AWS, GCP, Agile, etc.) supported by 5 days paid study leave.\nExpand Your Horizons: An additional £500 annual \"Personal Choice\" fund to learn whatever inspires you-work-related or not.\nSupport: Access to 1-2-1 professional coaching and team training to accelerate your career.\nHealth & Balance\n Premium Health: Vitality Private Medical Insurance (includes Apple Watch, gym discounts, and rewards).\nFlexibility: Genuine hybrid working with a WFH equipment allowance to perfect your home setup.\n Wellbeing: Cycle to Work scheme and a commitment to sustainable, healthy working practices.","description_format":"text","description_chars":6783,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":null,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Annual leave","Continuous learning","Health insurance","Hybrid work","Paid volunteering days"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United Kingdom","iso":"GB","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Artificial Intelligence","Cybersecurity","Government"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-09-06T07:42:10Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"GB","licensed_sponsor":true,"evidence":"Licensed UK visa sponsor (Skilled Worker, Senior or Specialist Worker)","filings_12m":null,"filings_prev_12m":null,"green_card_filings_12m":null,"median_offered_wage_usd":null,"route":"Skilled Worker; 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