FOR EMPLOYERS

Hiring AI and ML engineers is a different problem than hiring software engineers.

You need someone who can tell a real machine learning track record from a padded résumé, and who has the network to reach people who aren't looking. That's the whole business.

Hire AI Talent

SERVICES

Specialist AI recruitment across the stack.

Machine Learning Recruitment

ML engineers and applied scientists who ship models into production.

MLOps Recruitment

Engineers who build the pipelines, CI/CD and observability behind reliable ML.

LLM & Generative AI Recruitment

LLM engineers across RAG, agents, fine-tuning and evaluation.

AI Infrastructure Recruitment

Platform, data and GPU-infra engineers for training and inference at scale.

AI Leadership Hiring

Heads of AI, Directors of ML and pivotal first AI hires.

Executive Search

Retained, confidential VP and C-level AI leadership search.

WHY IRON RECRUIT

What you get that a general recruiter can't offer.

Technical screening by practitioners

Every candidate is assessed by a consultant who understands ML systems — not a generalist reading keywords off a résumé.

We headhunt passive AI talent

Most people we place weren’t job-hunting. We source directly out of research groups and high-performing AI teams.

Only 2–3 candidates per role

You get a short, high-signal shortlist with our assessment notes — never a pile of applications to wade through.

Compensation intelligence

Live AI/ML benchmarking across labs and scale-ups so offers land where they need to, the first time.

ENGAGEMENT MODELS

Structured to match how you hire.

Retained Search

For AI leadership hires and first-of-kind roles where fit matters more than speed.

—Dedicated search lead

—Weekly shortlist reviews

—Market map included

Contingent Search

For individual-contributor ML roles at pace, with no upfront commitment.

—Pay on placement

—Multiple roles in parallel

—Fast initial shortlist

Embedded / RPO

For teams scaling AI headcount continuously over a quarter or more.

—On your Slack, day to day

—Pipeline ownership

—Monthly hiring reviews

THE PROCESS

From kickoff to signed offer.

STEP 1

Understand requirements

Define the real technical bar, comp band and must-haves with the hiring lead.

STEP 2

Headhunt passive talent

Direct outreach into research groups and AI teams — beyond who's applying.

STEP 3

Technical screening

Practitioner-led assessment before any candidate reaches your inbox.

STEP 4

Present 2–3 candidates

A tight shortlist of genuinely strong people, with our notes attached.

STEP 5

Interview & offer support

Scheduling, feedback, comp negotiation and references through to signature.

Let's scope the role.

A 20-minute call is usually enough to tell you whether we're a fit.

Book a Hiring Consultation