Job Description Lead AI/ML Software Engineer Job Description The Solution Acceleration & Innovation (SA&I) team within Personal Banking strives to position RBC as a Global Leader in innovation with a focus on emerging opportunities and technologies. SA&I is a critical horizontal function that supports multiple business lines by building new products and capabilities, with a primary focus on emerging technologies, payments, security, data and privacy, and Artificial Intelligence (AI). We are a multi-disciplinary team with workspaces in Toronto, ON and Orlando, FL consisting of cutting-edge technology researchers and experts, strategists, product managers, project managers, security and payments specialists, developers, and designers. This unique mix enables us to not only generate forward-looking product concepts but also to deliver and launch products in the market – strengthening RBC’s leadership position. What is the opportunity? We’re looking a Lead AI/ML Software Engineer to drive innovation at the intersection of AI / Machine Learning and financial services. In this role, you’ll own end-to-end AI solution delivery – from data preprocessing and exploration through ML algorithm development, pipeline scaling, and production system deployment and monitoring. You’ll join SA&I’s team of technologists reimagining the future of the Personal Bank at RBC. What will you do? Design and build cutting-edge ML models in support of Agentic Commerce solutions. Lead the development of Personal Banking’s machine learning products across the full lifecycle - from ideation and proof-of-concept through development, deployment, and production monitoring. Collaborate with product and stakeholders to ensure the seamless delivery and integration of AI solutions. Apply software engineering and ML best practices architect robust, scalable machine learning systems. Provide comprehensive documentation and articulate design decisions and technical rationale to support team understanding and knowledge transfer. Stay current with emerging AI/ML technologies, mentor team members, and champion a culture of innovation and continuous learning. What do you need to succeed? Must have: PhD or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, or equivalent hands-on experience. Exceptional verbal and written communication skills with proven ability to collaborate effectively across cross-functional teams (business, engineering, model risk management). Five (5) or more years building and deploying Machine Learning models in production for real business problems. Advanced proficiency in Python (preferred) and/or other programming languages, with demonstrated ability to write production-grade code and documentation. Advanced proficiency with large language model architectures, including inference (Tensorflow or Pytorch), fine-tuning, and model deployment. Strong understanding and work experience with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) systems, agentic systems, orchestration frameworks, context and memory management, and tool/skills integration patterns. In-depth knowledge of embeddings, re-rankers, and vector databases. Expertise in ML experimentation, model evaluation, and production observability. Proven experience building and deploying RESTful APIs for ML model serving (FastAPI, Flask). Demonstrated proficiency with MLOps practices, including model serving, monitoring, CI/CD pipelines for ML systems, and containerized workload deployment (OpenShift Container Platform / OCP4 or Kubernetes) Proficiency with AI-assisted software development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Windsurf AI, Anthropic Claude Code). Nice-to-have: Experience with Small Language Models (SLMs) for on-device inference, domain specialization through fine-tuning, or Reinforcement Learning applications. Track record of adopting and leveraging AI-driven solutions to enhance productivity, automate routine tasks, and drive efficiency. Demonstrates curiosity about emerging AI capabilities and a thoughtful approach to applying them for enhanced client outcomes. Experience in managing, mentoring, or coaching team members and empowering junior engineers to grow and succeed. What’s in it for you? We thrive on the challenge to be our best, progressive thinking to keep growing, and working together to deliver trusted advice to help our clients thrive and communities prosper. We care about each other, reaching our potential, making a difference to our communities, and achieving success that is mutual. Ability to make a difference and lasting impact Work in a dynamic, collaborative, progressive, and high-performing team Opportunities to do challenging work Consistent access to training, education and professional development opportunities Be a part of a collaborative team that brings outside-in thinking to RBC Job Skills Big Data Management, Data Mining, Data Science, Deep Learning, Machine Learning (ML), Predictive Analytics, Programming Languages Additional Job Details Address: RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTO City: Toronto Country: Canada Work hours/week: 37.5 Employment Type: Full time Platform: PERSONAL & COMMERCIAL BANKING Job Type: Regular Pay Type: Salaried Posted Date: 2026-06-29 Application Deadline: 2026-07-20 Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the application deadline date above Our Employment Opportunities At RBC, we are guided by living shared values of Client First, Integrity, Collaboration, Respect and Excellence and winning together as One RBC. We believe an inclusive workplace that has diverse perspectives is core to our continued growth as one of the largest and most successful banks in the world. Maintaining a workplace where our employees feel supported to perform at their best, effectively collaborate, drive innovation, and grow professionally helps to bring our Purpose to life and create value for our clients and communities. RBC strives to deliver this through policies and programs intended to foster a workplace based on respect, belonging and opportunity for all. Join our Talent Community Stay in-the-know about great career opportunities at RBC. Sign up and get customized info on our latest jobs, career tips and Recruitment events that matter to you. Expand your limits and create a new future together at RBC. Find out how we use our passion and drive to enhance the well-being of our clients and communities at jobs.rbc.com. RBC is presently inviting candidates to apply for this existing vacancy. Applying to this posting allows you to express your interest in this current career opportunity at RBC. Qualified applicants may be contacted to review their resume in more detail. Royal Bank of Canada is a global financial institution with a purpose-driven, principles-led approach to delivering leading performance. Our success comes from the 84,000+ employees who bring our vision, values and strategy to life so we can help our clients thrive and communities prosper. As Canada’s biggest bank, and one of the largest in the world based on market capitalization, we have a diversified business model with a focus on innovation and providing exceptional experiences to more than 16 million clients in Canada, the U.S. and 34 other countries. Learn more at rbc.com.‎ We are proud to support a broad range of community initiatives through donations, community investments and employee volunteer activities. See how at rbc.com/community-social-impact.