Engineering Manager - AI Research

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hey, hello, hiya, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte!

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time-consuming, and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.

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Where and How You Can Work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work.

That means if you want to do your thing in the office (if you're near one), at home, or a bit of both, it's up to you.

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What You’ll Be Doing in This Role

As Canva scales, change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that's all part of the fun.

So this will give you a flavor of the type of things you'll be working on when you start, but this will likely evolve.

At the moment, this role is focused on:

• Coaching, mentoring, and growing a team of machine learning engineers and researchers, fostering a culture of collaboration, open communication, and psychological safety.
• Driving the planning and refinement of research goals, ensuring alignment between Canva’s needs and the skill sets, strengths, and growth opportunities of engineers and researchers on the team.
• Identifying opportunities for cross-team collaboration to work on new ideas and improvements that help achieve our research goals.
• Facilitating knowledge sharing and effectively advocating for engineering and research needs to non-technical stakeholders.
• Partnering closely with Product Managers to understand and contribute to the product roadmap.
• Collaborating with Product, Research, and Platform teams across the Generative AI Supergroup to achieve our goals.
• Aligning with AI Research Group leadership on prioritization and resourcing of research projects that are most impactful for Canva.

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You're Probably a Match If:

✔️ You are experienced in both technical and people leadership, making sound decisions and delivering outcomes on technical projects.
✔️ You have strong research skills with the ability to stay up-to-date on deep learning and generative AI.
✔️ You can translate cutting-edge research into practical solutions that enhance Canva’s user experience.
✔️ You have experience or strong interest in design—this team works at the intersection of AI research and design.
✔️ You can define and refine a research process that balances experimentation with feature delivery.
✔️ You can effectively communicate the value of research and development to non-technical stakeholders.

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About the Team

The AI Research Group (AIRG) is responsible for developing solutions to Canva’s hardest problems.

Through a culture of constant experimentation and prototyping, AIRG combines the latest cutting-edge techniques with novel fundamental research to solve complex, open-ended problems in image and design generation/editing.

The group has the freedom to propose its own research projects and ships only the most impactful work to fulfill its mission:

Making Canva an AI creative partner to every individual, team, classroom, and enterprise in the world.

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What's In It for You?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard—but you'll experience moments of magic, connectivity, and fun throughout life at Canva.

We also offer a stack of benefits to set you up for success in and outside of work.

Here’s a taste of what’s on offer:

🎁 Equity packages – we want our success to be yours too.
👶 Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers.
💰 Annual Vibe & Thrive allowance – supports your well-being, social connection, office setup & more.
🌍 Flexible leave options – empowering you to take time to recharge and support personal causes.

👉 Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

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Other Stuff to Know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills, and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture.

When you apply, please tell us:

• The pronouns you use.
• Any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

📢 Please note: Interviews are conducted virtually.

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🚀 Apply Now and Join Us in Redefining Design with AI!