AKQA Media
At AKQA (part of WPP), we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design and build adaptive digital products, services and experiences that capture the imagination and deliver impressive returns for our clients. Our roles and responsibilities are rapidly changing during this age of rapid AI growth, adoption, capability and market options. AI Landscape and Production AI implementation experience is essential. The Technical Lead is the main driver for the end-to-end; ideation, technical innovation, design, scoping, development, deployment and maintenance of solutions using the latest tools and technologies. The Technical Lead has overall responsibility for the day-to-day technical ownership and direction of a project. While this role is client facing and involves leading the technical direction, you will also be expected to lead the architecture of the project and will contribute to code, particularly during critical phases or to prototype new features. You will be working closely with Business, Project Management, Creative, UX, and Data teams whilst also running on shore, off shore and hybrid development teams. This role also involves contributing to Technical Strategy, ideation, pitching, pre sales activities and engineering, thought leadership, profile creation and speaking engagements. Based in London (Farringdon), in a Hybrid working environment, frequently collaborating with our global studios and partners, you will enjoy working in a team of highly skilled people, all with strong opinions about various technologies, frameworks and approaches. You will articulate your ideas to colleagues effectively whilst also taking on board the ideas of others and remaining solutions focused. You will thrive when faced with new challenges, view them as opportunities and constantly look to improve client offerings. You will work in a progressive environment that fosters a meritocratic culture, surrounded by some of the brightest minds in their fields. As a Technical Lead at AKQA, you will be inspired by technology and have a passion for creating innovative solutions. While you may from time to time also be asked to wear the hats of a Project Manager, Scrum Master or Product Owner; we are looking for a Technologist first, with these additional capabilities. Technical Architecture and Engineering capability and experience is mandatory. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Client facing. Thought Leadership and promotion of AKQA Technology. AI Implementor AI Usage - proficient elevated workflow and development tooling AI Enabled Experience Development & Integration - vendor and cloud landscape knowledge, systems design, integration & model customisation - with proven experience of addressing marketing challenges such as content generation, personalisation, campaign optimisation etc. AI Architecture - Agentic AI creation and Orchestration. AI Content & Data Engineering - experience of collecting, cleansing, transforming and embedding. AI Cost x Value calculations. AI Governance and Testing models. Design and implement first class end to end Solutions and MACH Architectures. Ability to create prototypes or bug fixes. Ability to integrate innovative solutions into the technical architecture. Ability to analyse, appraise and make recommendations, taking into account existing client technology landscape whilst pushing new technology solutions to align with business ambitions. Ability to evaluate and validate the technical complexities of multi tiered web solutions and systems integration, their underlying technologies and the latest technical tools. Ability to gather requirements and break them down into the technical tasks required to complete a project phase. Ability to operate within different software delivery methodologies such as Lean Innovation teams, KANBAN and larger SCRUM teams. Ability to recognise technical risk and plan to mitigate, and/or move fast to solutionise. Ability to decide the resource profile required for a project and to provide top down and bottom up estimates against a scope. Line manage and coach Developers and help them to grow and develop their careers and capabilities. Ability to manage one or two; onshore, nearshore, offshore or hybrid development team(s) at a time. Strive to learn new skills and stay abreast of technical developments, successfully applying them to work practices. Ability to compare and select the most appropriate supplier or product for the required task. Ability and techniques to improve processes per project, client workstreams and in the technology department as a whole. Technical skills and knowledge: Cloud hosting providers such as AWS, Azure, GCP, Vercel & Netlify Cross platform AI experience across AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google (e.g. Bedrock, AgentCore, Vertex, Azure ML etc.) Advanced Python programming AI frameworks such as AutoGen, Langflow, Tensorflow Knowledge of Infrastructure as Code, CI/CD Use of Middleware and RESTful or GraphQL APIs Microservices and MACH Architectures. HTML, CSS, Javascript frameworks such as React, or Mobile technologies such as SwiftUI, Kotlin, Flutter or React native CMS, DXPs and common MarTech SaaS products integration Atlassian, Azure DevOps, GitLab or similar workflow tools Understanding of Automation and Quality assurance practices QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Must be from an engineering or development background. A continuous improvement approach to management. Proactive self starter with acute attention to detail and drive for improvement. A practically minded thought leader whose first priority is delivering excellent work. Advocate for improvements to processes, quality, and security. Analytical and positive mindset with a personable and professional approach. Sharp attention to detail and a passion for new technology, staying abreast with the latest developments in the industry. Professional written and verbal communication. Be able to talk about Technology to non technical audiences (clients, stakeholders and team members). Champion continuous improvement and best in class software development processes. Contribute to the ideation process and be proactive in proposing technical solutions to needs that other disciplines may not be aware of. Explore our extensive range of benefits. We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.
At AKQA (part of WPP), we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design and build adaptive digital products, services and experiences that capture the imagination and deliver impressive returns for our clients. Our roles and responsibilities are rapidly changing during this age of rapid AI growth, adoption, capability and market options. AI Landscape and Production AI implementation experience is essential. The Technical Lead is the main driver for the end-to-end; ideation, technical innovation, design, scoping, development, deployment and maintenance of solutions using the latest tools and technologies. The Technical Lead has overall responsibility for the day-to-day technical ownership and direction of a project. While this role is client facing and involves leading the technical direction, you will also be expected to lead the architecture of the project and will contribute to code, particularly during critical phases or to prototype new features. You will be working closely with Business, Project Management, Creative, UX, and Data teams whilst also running on shore, off shore and hybrid development teams. This role also involves contributing to Technical Strategy, ideation, pitching, pre sales activities and engineering, thought leadership, profile creation and speaking engagements. Based in London (Farringdon), in a Hybrid working environment, frequently collaborating with our global studios and partners, you will enjoy working in a team of highly skilled people, all with strong opinions about various technologies, frameworks and approaches. You will articulate your ideas to colleagues effectively whilst also taking on board the ideas of others and remaining solutions focused. You will thrive when faced with new challenges, view them as opportunities and constantly look to improve client offerings. You will work in a progressive environment that fosters a meritocratic culture, surrounded by some of the brightest minds in their fields. As a Technical Lead at AKQA, you will be inspired by technology and have a passion for creating innovative solutions. While you may from time to time also be asked to wear the hats of a Project Manager, Scrum Master or Product Owner; we are looking for a Technologist first, with these additional capabilities. Technical Architecture and Engineering capability and experience is mandatory. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Client facing. Thought Leadership and promotion of AKQA Technology. AI Implementor AI Usage - proficient elevated workflow and development tooling AI Enabled Experience Development & Integration - vendor and cloud landscape knowledge, systems design, integration & model customisation - with proven experience of addressing marketing challenges such as content generation, personalisation, campaign optimisation etc. AI Architecture - Agentic AI creation and Orchestration. AI Content & Data Engineering - experience of collecting, cleansing, transforming and embedding. AI Cost x Value calculations. AI Governance and Testing models. Design and implement first class end to end Solutions and MACH Architectures. Ability to create prototypes or bug fixes. Ability to integrate innovative solutions into the technical architecture. Ability to analyse, appraise and make recommendations, taking into account existing client technology landscape whilst pushing new technology solutions to align with business ambitions. Ability to evaluate and validate the technical complexities of multi tiered web solutions and systems integration, their underlying technologies and the latest technical tools. Ability to gather requirements and break them down into the technical tasks required to complete a project phase. Ability to operate within different software delivery methodologies such as Lean Innovation teams, KANBAN and larger SCRUM teams. Ability to recognise technical risk and plan to mitigate, and/or move fast to solutionise. Ability to decide the resource profile required for a project and to provide top down and bottom up estimates against a scope. Line manage and coach Developers and help them to grow and develop their careers and capabilities. Ability to manage one or two; onshore, nearshore, offshore or hybrid development team(s) at a time. Strive to learn new skills and stay abreast of technical developments, successfully applying them to work practices. Ability to compare and select the most appropriate supplier or product for the required task. Ability and techniques to improve processes per project, client workstreams and in the technology department as a whole. Technical skills and knowledge: Cloud hosting providers such as AWS, Azure, GCP, Vercel & Netlify Cross platform AI experience across AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google (e.g. Bedrock, AgentCore, Vertex, Azure ML etc.) Advanced Python programming AI frameworks such as AutoGen, Langflow, Tensorflow Knowledge of Infrastructure as Code, CI/CD Use of Middleware and RESTful or GraphQL APIs Microservices and MACH Architectures. HTML, CSS, Javascript frameworks such as React, or Mobile technologies such as SwiftUI, Kotlin, Flutter or React native CMS, DXPs and common MarTech SaaS products integration Atlassian, Azure DevOps, GitLab or similar workflow tools Understanding of Automation and Quality assurance practices QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Must be from an engineering or development background. A continuous improvement approach to management. Proactive self starter with acute attention to detail and drive for improvement. A practically minded thought leader whose first priority is delivering excellent work. Advocate for improvements to processes, quality, and security. Analytical and positive mindset with a personable and professional approach. Sharp attention to detail and a passion for new technology, staying abreast with the latest developments in the industry. Professional written and verbal communication. Be able to talk about Technology to non technical audiences (clients, stakeholders and team members). Champion continuous improvement and best in class software development processes. Contribute to the ideation process and be proactive in proposing technical solutions to needs that other disciplines may not be aware of. Explore our extensive range of benefits. We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.
AKQA Media
At AKQA (part of WPP), we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. We work at the intersection of design, technology and culture to deliver experiences that are as considered as they are impactful. Our designers bring clarity to complexity, combining strong visual craft with strategic thinking to create work that feels effortless, precise and deeply intentional. As a Senior Designer, you will play a critical role in shaping high quality interactive experiences across digital platforms. You will contribute to the creative direction of projects, crafting refined, elegant design solutions that balance concept, usability and meticulous attention to detail. Working within an embedded client team, you will help define and deliver digital experiences that support global product storytelling and launch moments, ensuring every interaction is purposeful, cohesive and held to the highest standard. This role is with AKQA, embedded within a client team, and requires onsite collaboration in the client studio three days per week. This is a 6-9 month fixed term contract, offered on a hybrid basis. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Create exceptional visual design across web and interactive platforms, with a focus on clarity, hierarchy and precision Contribute to concept development and carry ideas through to beautifully executed outcomes Design systems, interfaces and components that scale across multiple touchpoints and experiences Collaborate closely with UX, copy, technology and production to ensure seamless integration of design and functionality Translate ideas into sketches, prototypes and high fidelity designs with speed and accuracy Uphold and elevate the level of craft across all work, ensuring consistency and attention to detail at every stage Present work with confidence, clearly articulating the thinking behind design decisions Work in close partnership with senior creatives to refine and evolve the overall design direction QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Significant experience in visual and interactive design, ideally within an agency environment A portfolio that demonstrates a high level of craft, taste and attention to detail Experience designing for large scale digital platforms or global brand ecosystems Strong understanding of layout, typography, motion and interaction design principles Ability to move fluidly between concept and execution Proficiency in modern design and prototyping tools Experience working collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams Comfortable operating at pace while maintaining a consistently high standard of output Deeply detail oriented, with a commitment to precision and quality Strong sense of visual taste and design judgment Curious and thoughtful, with a drive to refine and improve the work Calm, focused and solutions oriented in fast paced environments Confident communicator, able to build trust with clients and teams alike We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. About WPP WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands. We unite cutting edge media intelligence and data solutions, world class creativity, next generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company - powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth. For more information, visit
At AKQA (part of WPP), we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. We work at the intersection of design, technology and culture to deliver experiences that are as considered as they are impactful. Our designers bring clarity to complexity, combining strong visual craft with strategic thinking to create work that feels effortless, precise and deeply intentional. As a Senior Designer, you will play a critical role in shaping high quality interactive experiences across digital platforms. You will contribute to the creative direction of projects, crafting refined, elegant design solutions that balance concept, usability and meticulous attention to detail. Working within an embedded client team, you will help define and deliver digital experiences that support global product storytelling and launch moments, ensuring every interaction is purposeful, cohesive and held to the highest standard. This role is with AKQA, embedded within a client team, and requires onsite collaboration in the client studio three days per week. This is a 6-9 month fixed term contract, offered on a hybrid basis. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Create exceptional visual design across web and interactive platforms, with a focus on clarity, hierarchy and precision Contribute to concept development and carry ideas through to beautifully executed outcomes Design systems, interfaces and components that scale across multiple touchpoints and experiences Collaborate closely with UX, copy, technology and production to ensure seamless integration of design and functionality Translate ideas into sketches, prototypes and high fidelity designs with speed and accuracy Uphold and elevate the level of craft across all work, ensuring consistency and attention to detail at every stage Present work with confidence, clearly articulating the thinking behind design decisions Work in close partnership with senior creatives to refine and evolve the overall design direction QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Significant experience in visual and interactive design, ideally within an agency environment A portfolio that demonstrates a high level of craft, taste and attention to detail Experience designing for large scale digital platforms or global brand ecosystems Strong understanding of layout, typography, motion and interaction design principles Ability to move fluidly between concept and execution Proficiency in modern design and prototyping tools Experience working collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams Comfortable operating at pace while maintaining a consistently high standard of output Deeply detail oriented, with a commitment to precision and quality Strong sense of visual taste and design judgment Curious and thoughtful, with a drive to refine and improve the work Calm, focused and solutions oriented in fast paced environments Confident communicator, able to build trust with clients and teams alike We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. About WPP WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world's leading brands. We unite cutting edge media intelligence and data solutions, world class creativity, next generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company - powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth. For more information, visit
AKQA Media
At AKQA, we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design and build adaptive digital products, services and experiences that capture the imagination and deliver impressive returns for our clients. We are looking for a senior, architecture-led Principal Engineer to join our London Tech team as a Technical Lead. This is a hands on engineering role, not a strategy only or evangelism position. You will spend the majority of your time designing, building and shipping enterprise grade systems, with roughly 65 to 70% hands on delivery and 30 to 35% technical leadership, architecture and team guidance. You will lead the technical direction of complex client programmes across MACH architectures and production Generative AI; spanning Design to Code workflows, solution design and API contracts through to cloud infrastructure, deployment and ongoing operation. You will own architecture decisions, write and review production code, and mentor engineers, while remaining accountable for what ships, not just what is proposed. Production Generative AI experience is essential. You must have at least three years' experience working with Generative AI, and have delivered at least one AI capability into a live, enterprise environment; not limited to prototypes, proofs of concept or demo builds. We need engineers who understand retrieval pipelines, evaluation, cost, governance and operational reliability at scale. AKQA is advanced in Design Systems and Design to Code practice; from Figma design systems through to UI development and application delivery. Generative AI is increasingly embedded across this design-to-application workflow, accelerating the path from design intent to production ready code and experiences. The Principal Engineer (Tech Lead) is a key technical contributor across the programme lifecycle, working closely with Technical Managers, cross-discipline teams and on shore, off shore and hybrid engineering squads. This role sits at Principal or Staff Engineer seniority, aligned with our Technical Managers and Technical Architects in scope and influence. While client facing and influential, the role is technologist first. You may occasionally support pre sales scoping or technical pitches, but your primary value is deep engineering craft, sound system design and reliable enterprise delivery. Technical architecture and hands on engineering capability are mandatory. Based in London (Farringdon), in a hybrid working environment, frequently collaborating with our global studios and partners, you will enjoy working in a team of highly skilled people, all with strong opinions about various technologies, frameworks and approaches. You will articulate your ideas to colleagues effectively whilst also taking on board the ideas of others and remaining solutions focused. You will thrive when faced with new challenges, view them as opportunities and constantly look to improve client offerings. You will work in a progressive environment that fosters a meritocratic culture, surrounded by some of the brightest minds in their fields. As a Principal Engineer (Tech Lead) at AKQA, you will be inspired by technology and have a passion for building robust, scalable solutions that perform in production. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Generative AI and Intelligent Experience Architecture Minimum three years' experience with Generative AI, including proven experience shipping at least one AI solution to production in an enterprise context (beyond prototypes or sandbox experiments) AI architecture for experience platforms: system design for intelligent products and services, including RAG, GraphRAG, agent orchestration and proximity / relevance evaluation Hands on implementation with Vercel AI SDK, Vercel AI Cloud and agentic cloud patterns for production AI experiences AI content and data engineering: ingestion, cleansing, transformation, embedding, indexing and retrieval pipeline design Integration across cloud AI services (e.g. GCP + Vertex AI, Vercel AI Cloud, AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI) within a broader MACH and API led landscape; with preference for GCP and Vercel, or suitable equivalents on AWS and Azure, and the capability to draw parallels across platforms GEO and LLM optimisation: experience designing intelligent experiences and content structures optimised for generative engine discovery and LLM retrieval AI cost value analysis, observability, governance, testing and evaluation frameworks for production systems Practical application of Generative AI to marketing and experience challenges; e.g. personalisation, content generation, campaign optimisation; with measurable production outcomes Design Systems and Design to Code Design to Code workflow: advanced Design Systems thinking; experience bridging design intent through to UI development and production application builds Generative AI in the design-to-application process: applying Gen AI to accelerate, validate and quality assure the path from design to shippable code and experiences Design and delivery tooling: experience with Figma, Cursor, Claude and Vercel v0 advantageous Platform, Architecture and Engineering MACH architecture: microservices, API first, cloud native and headless composition; minimum eight years' experience designing and delivering MACH based enterprise platforms Cloud platforms: deep hands on experience across GCP and Vercel, with strong capability on AWS and/or Microsoft Azure; infrastructure design, security and operational ownership, and the ability to draw parallels across cloud providers API design: RESTful and GraphQL APIs, contract first design, versioning, gateway patterns and integration across SaaS, CMS, DXP and MarTech stacks Distributed systems and event driven architecture: messaging, async workflows, resilience patterns, idempotency and at scale system behaviour Backend and platform engineering: advanced server side development (Python recommended; additional languages a plus), service design and performance optimisation Infrastructure as Code and CI/CD: automated build, test and deployment pipelines (e.g. Terraform, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, GitLab) Cloud and edge hosting: GCP, Vercel, AWS, Azure, Netlify and related deployment models Front end integration literacy: HTML, CSS, JavaScript and js + React; mobile technologies (SwiftUI, Kotlin, Flutter or React Native) advantageous CMS, DXPs, MarTech and SaaS integration in complex enterprise landscapes; including headless CMS platforms such as Contentful, Sanity, ContentStack or similar Workflow and delivery tooling: GitHub, Bitbucket, GitLab, Atlassian, Azure DevOps, CI/CD cloud functions or similar Automation, quality assurance and non functional requirements: security, performance, reliability and maintainability QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Must be from a senior engineering, platform or architecture background; Principal, Staff or equivalent depth of hands on experience Builder first mindset: you lead by doing, with architecture informed by what you have shipped in production A continuous improvement approach to engineering practice and team ways of working Proactive self starter with acute attention to detail and drive for improvement Practically minded: excellent work in production matters more than abstract thought leadership Advocate for improvements to processes, quality, security and operational excellence Analytical, creative and positive mindset with a personable and professional approach Sharp attention to detail and a passion for new technology, staying abreast with the latest developments in the industry Professional written and verbal communication Able to explain complex technical decisions to non technical audiences (clients, stakeholders and team members) Champion continuous improvement and best in class software development processes Contribute to technical discovery and be proactive in proposing engineering solutions to needs that other disciplines may not be aware of. RECENT GENERATIVE AI WORK A selection of recent Generative AI work from across AKQA: Google: Bringing emotion and intuition back to online shopping Netflix: It's What's Inside - The Game Nike: Never Done Evolving Explore our extensive range of benefits. We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.
At AKQA, we believe in the imaginative application of art and science to create beautiful ideas, products and services. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative approach, we design and build adaptive digital products, services and experiences that capture the imagination and deliver impressive returns for our clients. We are looking for a senior, architecture-led Principal Engineer to join our London Tech team as a Technical Lead. This is a hands on engineering role, not a strategy only or evangelism position. You will spend the majority of your time designing, building and shipping enterprise grade systems, with roughly 65 to 70% hands on delivery and 30 to 35% technical leadership, architecture and team guidance. You will lead the technical direction of complex client programmes across MACH architectures and production Generative AI; spanning Design to Code workflows, solution design and API contracts through to cloud infrastructure, deployment and ongoing operation. You will own architecture decisions, write and review production code, and mentor engineers, while remaining accountable for what ships, not just what is proposed. Production Generative AI experience is essential. You must have at least three years' experience working with Generative AI, and have delivered at least one AI capability into a live, enterprise environment; not limited to prototypes, proofs of concept or demo builds. We need engineers who understand retrieval pipelines, evaluation, cost, governance and operational reliability at scale. AKQA is advanced in Design Systems and Design to Code practice; from Figma design systems through to UI development and application delivery. Generative AI is increasingly embedded across this design-to-application workflow, accelerating the path from design intent to production ready code and experiences. The Principal Engineer (Tech Lead) is a key technical contributor across the programme lifecycle, working closely with Technical Managers, cross-discipline teams and on shore, off shore and hybrid engineering squads. This role sits at Principal or Staff Engineer seniority, aligned with our Technical Managers and Technical Architects in scope and influence. While client facing and influential, the role is technologist first. You may occasionally support pre sales scoping or technical pitches, but your primary value is deep engineering craft, sound system design and reliable enterprise delivery. Technical architecture and hands on engineering capability are mandatory. Based in London (Farringdon), in a hybrid working environment, frequently collaborating with our global studios and partners, you will enjoy working in a team of highly skilled people, all with strong opinions about various technologies, frameworks and approaches. You will articulate your ideas to colleagues effectively whilst also taking on board the ideas of others and remaining solutions focused. You will thrive when faced with new challenges, view them as opportunities and constantly look to improve client offerings. You will work in a progressive environment that fosters a meritocratic culture, surrounded by some of the brightest minds in their fields. As a Principal Engineer (Tech Lead) at AKQA, you will be inspired by technology and have a passion for building robust, scalable solutions that perform in production. ROLE REQUIREMENTS Generative AI and Intelligent Experience Architecture Minimum three years' experience with Generative AI, including proven experience shipping at least one AI solution to production in an enterprise context (beyond prototypes or sandbox experiments) AI architecture for experience platforms: system design for intelligent products and services, including RAG, GraphRAG, agent orchestration and proximity / relevance evaluation Hands on implementation with Vercel AI SDK, Vercel AI Cloud and agentic cloud patterns for production AI experiences AI content and data engineering: ingestion, cleansing, transformation, embedding, indexing and retrieval pipeline design Integration across cloud AI services (e.g. GCP + Vertex AI, Vercel AI Cloud, AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI) within a broader MACH and API led landscape; with preference for GCP and Vercel, or suitable equivalents on AWS and Azure, and the capability to draw parallels across platforms GEO and LLM optimisation: experience designing intelligent experiences and content structures optimised for generative engine discovery and LLM retrieval AI cost value analysis, observability, governance, testing and evaluation frameworks for production systems Practical application of Generative AI to marketing and experience challenges; e.g. personalisation, content generation, campaign optimisation; with measurable production outcomes Design Systems and Design to Code Design to Code workflow: advanced Design Systems thinking; experience bridging design intent through to UI development and production application builds Generative AI in the design-to-application process: applying Gen AI to accelerate, validate and quality assure the path from design to shippable code and experiences Design and delivery tooling: experience with Figma, Cursor, Claude and Vercel v0 advantageous Platform, Architecture and Engineering MACH architecture: microservices, API first, cloud native and headless composition; minimum eight years' experience designing and delivering MACH based enterprise platforms Cloud platforms: deep hands on experience across GCP and Vercel, with strong capability on AWS and/or Microsoft Azure; infrastructure design, security and operational ownership, and the ability to draw parallels across cloud providers API design: RESTful and GraphQL APIs, contract first design, versioning, gateway patterns and integration across SaaS, CMS, DXP and MarTech stacks Distributed systems and event driven architecture: messaging, async workflows, resilience patterns, idempotency and at scale system behaviour Backend and platform engineering: advanced server side development (Python recommended; additional languages a plus), service design and performance optimisation Infrastructure as Code and CI/CD: automated build, test and deployment pipelines (e.g. Terraform, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, GitLab) Cloud and edge hosting: GCP, Vercel, AWS, Azure, Netlify and related deployment models Front end integration literacy: HTML, CSS, JavaScript and js + React; mobile technologies (SwiftUI, Kotlin, Flutter or React Native) advantageous CMS, DXPs, MarTech and SaaS integration in complex enterprise landscapes; including headless CMS platforms such as Contentful, Sanity, ContentStack or similar Workflow and delivery tooling: GitHub, Bitbucket, GitLab, Atlassian, Azure DevOps, CI/CD cloud functions or similar Automation, quality assurance and non functional requirements: security, performance, reliability and maintainability QUALITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS Must be from a senior engineering, platform or architecture background; Principal, Staff or equivalent depth of hands on experience Builder first mindset: you lead by doing, with architecture informed by what you have shipped in production A continuous improvement approach to engineering practice and team ways of working Proactive self starter with acute attention to detail and drive for improvement Practically minded: excellent work in production matters more than abstract thought leadership Advocate for improvements to processes, quality, security and operational excellence Analytical, creative and positive mindset with a personable and professional approach Sharp attention to detail and a passion for new technology, staying abreast with the latest developments in the industry Professional written and verbal communication Able to explain complex technical decisions to non technical audiences (clients, stakeholders and team members) Champion continuous improvement and best in class software development processes Contribute to technical discovery and be proactive in proposing engineering solutions to needs that other disciplines may not be aware of. RECENT GENERATIVE AI WORK A selection of recent Generative AI work from across AKQA: Google: Bringing emotion and intuition back to online shopping Netflix: It's What's Inside - The Game Nike: Never Done Evolving Explore our extensive range of benefits. We believe great work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we've adopted a hybrid approach including required in office days. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. AKQA is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers.