Machine Learning Research Team Lead

Job Description

What's the opportunity?

RBC Borealis is looking for a Machine Learning (ML) Research Team Lead to design and develop cutting-edge AI solutions that drive revenue growth within Personal Banking & Investments (PBI). You will lead a team of researchers and research engineers and operate at the intersection of advanced research and real-world applications, driving the translation of novel algorithms into scalable, production-ready systems. You’ll play a key role in shaping the AI research agenda while aligning innovation with enterprise priorities and regulatory expectations.This is an opportunity to influence the future of applied AI by delivering breakthrough capabilities that power intelligent, data-driven decision-making across the organization.

Your responsibilities include:

• Technical Leadership: Provide technical leadership and scientific guidance to AI projects, working within and across teams
• Research Innovation: Develop innovative machine learning approaches and novel intellectual property
• Product Delivery: Iteratively refine and deliver machine learning concepts from proof of concept through to product delivery
• Research Leadership: Contribute to defining our research vision, publish papers, and communicate internally and externally around machine learning research
• Mentorship: Collaborate with team members including other researchers, engineers, and interns to grow and develop their skills in AI research and solutioning

You're our ideal candidate if you have:

• A Ph.D. degree in Computer Science or a related technical field;
• At least 2 years of experience as a machine learning researcher or engineer in a product-centric environment or equivalent experience;
• Expertise in machine learning, with experience in recommender systems, experimental design, or reinforcement learning being a plus;
• Experience delivering high-impact machine learning products;
• Experience of mentorship including junior researchers and engineers and experienced high-performance researchers;
• Involvement across the research and development lifecycle, from prototyping to production, engaging with stakeholders to develop solutions that meet business needs;
• The ability to formulate and drive a research project independently;
• Exceptional communication skills;
• A history of high quality academic publications (e.g., NeurIPS, ACL, EMNLP, CVPR, ICLR, ICML etc.).

What's in it for you?

• Become part of a team that thinks progressively and works collaboratively. We care about seeing each other reach full potential;
• A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including bonuses and flexible benefits, competitive compensation, commissions, and stock options where applicable;
• Leaders who support your development through coaching and managing opportunities;
• Ability to make a difference and lasting impact from a local-to-global scale.

About RBC Borealis

RBC Borealis is the driving force behind Royal Bank of Canada’s AI and data innovation. As part of Canada’s largest financial institution, we bring together a team of architects, engineers, scientists, and product experts on a mission to revolutionize finance through world-class research, solutions, and a resilient data platform. With locations across Toronto, Waterloo, Montreal, Calgary, and Vancouver, we’re at the forefront of AI research and platform development. With a focus on cutting-edge research in areas like time series forecasting, causal machine learning, and responsible AI, we are seamlessly integrating AI research and data engineering, to solve critical challenges in the financial industry. We are building intelligent, and scalable, data-driven solutions that will help communities thrive and drive innovation for our customers across the bank.

Inclusion and Equal Opportunity Employment

RBC is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veterans status, Aboriginal/Native American status or any other legally-protected factors. Disability-related accommodations during the application process are available upon request.

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Job Skills

Data Science, Decision Making, Emerging Technologies, Group Problem Solving, Machine Learning (ML), Multi-Level Communication, 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:

TECHNOLOGY AND OPERATIONS

Job Type:

Regular

Pay Type:

Salaried

Posted Date:

2026-05-06

Application Deadline:

2026-10-05

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