AI Engineering Director

AI Engineering Director

Location: Riyadh, Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia

Job description

Proudly voted a Great Place to Work, we are a dynamic startup in the SaaS space that is revolutionizing the way businesses communicate. Our team is made up of 500 energetic and passionate Unifones who are dedicated to delivering the best possible experience to 5000+ customer-centric companies. We pride ourselves on our fun and collaborative work environment, where creativity and new ideas are constantly encouraged. As shareholders in the business, we’re so much more than a group of passionate communicators. We are Unifones. Join our team and be a part of something big!

As we continue to expand our technology capabilities, we are seeking a highly experienced and visionary Director of AI Development to lead our Artificial Intelligence initiatives and guide our team to new frontiers of innovation.

The Director of AI Development will be responsible for strategically shaping and executing our AI roadmap. This individual will lead a dedicated, multi-layered AI engineering organization—comprising AI Engineering Managers, Team Leads, and their squads—to design, build, and integrate advanced AI models, solutions, and platforms. By fostering a culture of continuous innovation, technical excellence, and cross-functional collaboration, the Director of AI Development will ensure that Unifonic remains at the cutting edge of AI technologies, delivering measurable value and transformative capabilities across the business.

Help us shape the future of communications by:

1. Defining the long-term AI strategy and roadmap in alignment with the company’s overall business objectives, product vision, and innovation goals
2. Staying abreast of emerging AI trends, technologies, tools, and best practices, and proactively identifying opportunities for new integrations and enhancements
3. Overseeing the selection, design, and implementation of cutting-edge AI and machine learning models, ensuring alignment with stakeholder requirements and industry standards
4. Evaluating and integrating external AI solutions (e.g., provider APIs, pre-trained models) to augment internal capabilities and accelerate time-to-market
5. Exploring and validating new AI methods, algorithms, and frameworks to optimize performance, scalability, and accuracy
6. Leading, mentoring, and developing AI Engineering Managers, supporting their growth and enabling them to effectively lead their respective teams of engineers and specialists
7. Fostering a collaborative, high-performance culture that emphasizes innovation, knowledge sharing, accountability, and professional development
8. Building and maintaining a talent pipeline, ensuring that the AI organization attracts, retains, and develops world-class engineering talent
9. Partnering closely with Product, Design, Data, Infrastructure, and other Engineering leaders to ensure the seamless integration of AI solutions into existing and future products
10. Collaborating with business stakeholders to understand AI-related requirements, communicate progress, and align on priorities and success metrics
11. Advocating for AI capabilities and communicating value to executive leadership, helping to shape strategic decisions and drive business outcomes
12. Establishing and maintaining engineering standards, processes, and best practices for model development, deployment, monitoring, and continuous improvement
13. Ensuring compliance with all relevant data privacy, security, and regulatory requirements in the development and deployment of AI solutions
14. Tracking and analyzing key performance indicators (KPIs), using data-driven insights to optimize performance, resource allocation, and return on investment

Job requirements

What you'll bring:

1. Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field; Ph.D. preferred
2. 10+ years of experience in software engineering, with at least 5 years focused on AI, machine learning, and advanced analytics
3. Demonstrated track record of delivering production-grade AI solutions at scale, ideally within a product-driven organization
4. Proven experience leading and building high-performing engineering teams, including managers and team leads
5. Deep understanding of modern AI/ML frameworks, architectures, and technologies (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch, large language models, generative AI, advanced NLP/NLU techniques)
6. Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to effectively translate technical concepts into business value for senior leadership
7. Strategic mindset, with a results-oriented approach to innovation and a passion for continuously pushing technical boundaries
8. Must be fluent in Arabic and English

As a Unifone you’ll receive a range of benefits:

1. Competitive salary and bonus
2. Unifonic share scheme (we are all owners!)
3. 30 holiday days after the first anniversary
4. Your Birthday off!
5. Spend up to 10 weeks per year working from anywhere in the world!
6. Paid leave for new parents
7. * LinkedIn learning license