How Aveni hired an AI Engineer in 21 days

About Aveni.

Aveni is a UK-based AI FinTech and RegTech business that builds Natural Language Processing tools for financial services. Founded in 2018 as a spin-out from the University of Edinburgh, the company developed FinLLM, the UK's first financial services Large Language Model.

With FinLLM central to its product roadmap, Aveni continues to invest in AI capability across NLP, machine learning and LLM development to support growth, innovation and compliance within the financial services sector.

Hiring specialist AI talent in a competitive market. 

As FinLLM became an increasingly important part of Aveni's product roadmap, the business needed to strengthen its AI engineering capability to support ongoing product development and future innovation. 

Like many organisations investing heavily in AI, Aveni was hiring in an increasingly competitive market. Engineers with experience across NLP, ML and LLMs remain some of the most sought-after professionals in tech, making it difficult to identify and secure the right talent quickly.

Alongside the technical requirements, Aveni also wanted to find someone who would fit well within the existing team and contribute positively as the business continued to scale.

With ambitious plans ahead, securing the right hire was important not only for immediate delivery, but also for maintaining momentum across a rapidly evolving AI roadmap.

Aveni needed an AI recruitment partner that understood the market and could help them identify, engage and secure specialist AI talent.

A targeted search for AI engineering expertise.

We worked closely with Aveni to understand the role in detail, including the technical requirements, team structure and how the successful hire would contribute to the continued development of FinLLM. 

Working alongside the hiring team, we built a clear picture of what success looked like for the role. This included the level of AI engineering expertise required, experience across NLP and Large Language Models, and the type of individual who would thrive within Aveni's environment.

Once the brief was agreed, we carried out a targeted search focused on AI Engineers with relevant experience across NLP, ML and LLM technologies. Alongside our existing AI talent network, we proactively approached suitable candidates who matched the requirements and were open to discussing new opportunities. 

Throughout the process, we managed candidate engagement, interview coordination and feedback, helping maintain momentum and ensuring the process moved efficiently from initial conversations through to offer acceptance.

AI Engineer hired in 21 days.

Within 21 days, Aveni successfully hired an AI Engineer with the experience required to support the continued growth of FinLLM and the wider AI function.

The successful candidate brought relevant AI engineering expertise and aligned well with both the technical requirements of the role and Aveni's culture. This allowed the business to strengthen its internal capability while maintaining momentum across key development initiatives.

By securing the right hire quickly, Aveni was able to continue investing in the development of AI solutions for the FinTech sector without extending hiring timelines or placing additional pressure on the existing team.

Key outcomes:

The partnership delivered a strong result for Aveni, helping the business secure specialist AI talent quickly while supporting its wider growth and product development plans. Here are the key outcomes:

• AI Engineer hired in 21 days
• Specialist NLP and LLM talent secured
• Strengthened internal AI engineering capability
• Supported the continued development of FinLLM
• Delivered through a contingency recruitment partnership

"The team at Digital Waffle were really good to work with. They took the time to understand the role and the kind of person we were looking for. Communication with Harry and the team was clear throughout, and they made the whole process feel straightforward. Happy to recommend them."

- People & Culture Manager, Aveni

By taking the time to understand Aveni's requirements and carrying out a focused search, we were able to secure an AI Engineer in just 21 days, helping the business strengthen its AI capability and continue the development of FinLLM.

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