Job DescriptionThe Director of Engineering, AI Frontiers is a hybrid management/IC role that leads a small team of AI engineers in evaluating frontier AI technologies for enterprise adoption. The person manages evaluations and prototyping of agentic systems, multimodal models, and AI tooling against real business scenarios while embedding security, compliance, and data governance constraints from the start. They produce working prototypes, reproducible evaluation reports, and evidence-backed recommendations communicated through Radar publications and executive briefings. The role requires 8+ years of engineering experience with 3+ in a lead/management capacity, hands-on LLM/agentic/RAG experience, comfort tracking the frontier, and the ability to translate technical findings for non-technical stakeholders in regulated environments.The Director of Engineering, AI Frontiers is a hybrid management/IC role that leads a small team of AI engineers in evaluating frontier AI technologies for enterprise adoption. The person manages evaluations and prototyping of agentic systems, multimodal models, and AI tooling against real business scenarios while embedding security, compliance, and data governance constraints from the start. They produce working prototypes, reproducible evaluation reports, and evidence-backed recommendations communicated through Radar publications and executive briefings. The role requires 8+ years of engineering experience with 3+ in a lead/management capacity, hands-on LLM/agentic/RAG experience, comfort tracking the frontier, and the ability to translate technical findings for non-technical stakeholders in regulated environments.WHAT IS THE OPPORTUNITY?The AI Frontiers team exists to close the gap between frontier AI capabilities and enterprise adoption. The gap is real: frontier models, agentic platforms, and AI-native tooling advance on a weekly cycle. Internal adoption moves on a quarterly or annual one. The team's mandate is to scan the landscape at the speed it moves, evaluate what matters with enterprise rigor, prove business value through hands‐on prototypes, and produce findings that pull adoption from business lines.This role leads the technical work of that mission. You will manage a small team of AI engineers, drive hands‐on evaluation and prototyping, build the tooling and infrastructure the team depends on, and ensure that evaluation recommendations are grounded in working code, not vendor demos.



You will also be a practitioner yourself: the team practices what it preaches, and every role carries explicit expectations for AI‐augmented work.WHAT WILL YOU DO?Manage and mentor a team of AI engineers across evaluation, prototyping, and tooling workLead hands‐on technical evaluations of frontier AI capabilities, including agentic systems, multimodal models, reasoning systems, and AI development toolingBuild working prototypes that test capabilities against real business scenarios and enterprise constraints, including security, data governance, and integration requirementsEstablish and maintain sandbox environments for rapid evaluation, validated with risk and security, activated on demandBuild and operate the tooling that supports the evaluation pipeline: intake, triage, design, execution, and results reviewPartner with liaisons in security, architecture, and risk to embed enterprise constraints into evaluation design from the start, not as an afterthoughtTranslate technical findings into clear, evidence‐backed recommendations that business‐line leaders can act onRepresent the engineering perspective in Radar publications, field work sessions, and executive briefingsEnsure evaluations are reproducible: methodology, test scenarios, data, and results documented to a standard that a peer could independently assessWHAT DO YOU NEED TO SUCCEED?Must have:8+ years of software engineering experience with 3+ years in a technical lead or engineering management rolePractical experience building and evaluating AI systems, including LLM‐based applications, agentic pipelines, and RAG architecturesComfort working at the frontier: you follow model releases, track agentic frameworks, and have opinions about what matters and what is hypeStrong engineering judgment: you know when to build a prototype in a day and when depth is warrantedAbility to communicate technical findings in plain language to non‐technical stakeholdersExperience working in or alongside highly regulated environments, with direct exposure to security, compliance,



or governance constraintsNice‐to‐have:Experience evaluating or benchmarking AI models and systems against defined success criteriaBackground in financial servicesFamiliarity with enterprise integration patterns, data platforms, or platform engineeringPublic writing, presentations, or open‐source contributions in the AI spaceWhat'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.A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including bonuses and flexible benefits, competitive compensation, commissions, and stock where applicableLeaders who support your development through coaching and managing opportunitiesAbility to make a difference and lasting impactWork in a agile, collaborative, progressive, and high‐performing teamA world‐class training program in financial servicesOpportunities to do challenging work.Job SkillsBig Data Analytics, Client Counseling, Coaching Others, Critical Thinking, Decision Making, Industry Knowledge, Machine Learning (ML), Results‐Oriented, Software Engineering, Software Product DesignAdditional Job DetailsAddress: RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTOCity: TorontoCountry: CanadaWork hours/week: 37.5Employment Type: Full timePlatform: TECHNOLOGY AND OPERATIONSJob Type: RegularPay Type: SalariedPosted Date: 2026-08-21Application Deadline: 2026-09-15Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the application deadline date aboveOur Employment OpportunitiesAt 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. #J-18808-Ljbffr

📌 Director Of Engineering, Ai Frontiers (Toronto)
🏢 RBC
📍 Toronto