Head of AI-Assisted Engineering
Engineering
Dubai
Onsite
Full-time
Lead
12+ Years
Posted Jun 2, 2026
About the role
A client of byteSpark.ai is seeking a Head of AI-Assisted Engineering to join a forward-thinking bank based in Dubai, in a role that is as much about building a new way of working as it is about delivering software. The context is deliberate and worth stating plainly: this bank currently runs an offshore engineering team of 35 and is bringing that function back onshore to Dubai as a lean team of 8, with AI-assisted development tools as the engine that makes that ratio not just viable but genuinely more powerful. The person hired into this role will report directly to the CEO, own the build of this centre of excellence from the ground up, and be accountable for delivering across mobile and web banking applications, internal tooling, and compliance and governance platforms. The right candidate will have strong engineering leadership credentials in a regulated environment, a hands-on and current working knowledge of tools like Claude, Codex, Gemini, Cursor, and GitHub Copilot, and the maturity to operate with significant autonomy at the most senior level of the organisation. This role will not suit someone who has read about AI-assisted engineering. It is built for someone who has already changed how they work because of it and is ready to build a team and a practice around that shift.
Requirements
- A minimum of 8 to 12 years of software engineering experience with at least 4 years in an engineering leadership role with direct team and delivery accountability
- Demonstrable hands-on experience using AI-assisted development tools such as Claude, Codex, Gemini, Cursor, or GitHub Copilot as an active and deliberate part of their engineering practice, not as an occasional experiment
- Proven ability to lead a small lean engineering team to deliver disproportionate output through tooling strategy, sprint discipline, and strong engineering culture
- Experience building or significantly shaping a new engineering function, practice, or centre of excellence from scratch
- Strong working knowledge of agile sprint methodology with evidence of consistently high delivery velocity in a lean team context
- Experience delivering across multiple product types including consumer-facing mobile and web applications and internal operational or compliance tooling
- Demonstrated ability to operate with direct accountability to a CEO, CTO, or equivalent executive and translate technical strategy into business outcomes
- Experience working within a bank, financial institution, or similarly regulated environment with an understanding of compliance, audit, and governance constraints in software delivery
- Ability to define the hiring bar and assess engineers specifically for their capacity to thrive in an AI-assisted development environment
Desirable skills
- Experience leading or playing a senior role in an offshore to onshore engineering transition
- Familiarity with banking-specific compliance and regulatory frameworks relevant to the UAE or GCC
- Experience with VS Code plugins, agentic coding workflows, or emerging AI development tooling beyond mainstream tools
- A track record of evangelising AI-assisted engineering practices to senior non-technical stakeholders
- Bilingual proficiency in English and Arabic
- Exposure to open source contribution or personal projects that demonstrate continuous self-directed learning in AI-assisted development
Role details
- Department
- Engineering
- Location
- Dubai
- Work setup
- Onsite
- Employment type
- Full-time
- Job level
- Lead
- Experience
- 12+ Years
- Industry
- Finance
- Sub-industry
- Banking
- Compensation
- AED 48-55k per month + visa and medical (family)
Frequently asked questions
This role is being recruited by byteSpark.ai on behalf of a client. byteSpark.ai is a talent and recruitment platform and is not the employer for this position. We are acting as the recruitment partner for a bank based in Dubai that is building a new onshore engineering centre of excellence. The identity of the hiring client will be shared with candidates at the appropriate stage of the process, once mutual interest has been established.
This role is based in Dubai, UAE. It is a full-time onshore position and is central to the client's decision to bring their engineering function back to Dubai from an offshore model. Candidates must be based in Dubai or genuinely open to relocating to Dubai before starting. This is not a remote or hybrid-first role, though the working model will be shaped in part by the person hired into it.
Given the seniority and novelty of this role the process is designed to be thorough but efficient. It runs in four stages. First, your application and questionnaire responses are reviewed by the byteSpark.ai team. Shortlisted candidates are invited to an initial screening call with a byteSpark.ai consultant where we will explore your hands-on experience with AI-assisted development tools, your leadership approach, and your appetite for the mandate. This is followed by a deeper role-specific discussion which may include a practical or strategic exercise relevant to the centre of excellence build. Final stage candidates will meet directly with the CEO of the hiring bank for a closing conversation.
We aim to provide an initial update within three to five business days of receiving your application. This role has a specific and carefully defined profile so the shortlisting process will be deliberate rather than fast. We will not progress applications quickly at the expense of getting it right, and we appreciate your patience. Every application will be reviewed properly.
Absolutely. Your application and everything you share through byteSpark.ai is treated with complete confidentiality. The identity of the hiring bank will not be disclosed until mutual interest has been confirmed and you have consented to being put forward. Your current employer and any other third parties will not be contacted at any stage without your explicit permission. We are aware that candidates for a role like this are often currently employed in senior positions and we handle every application with the discretion that warrants.