Lead AI Engineer

Upwork ($UPWK) is the world’s human and AI-powered work marketplace that connects businesses with highly skilled AI-enabled independent talent from across the globe. From entrepreneurs to Fortune 100 enterprises companies rely on Upwork’s trusted platform and its mindful AI companion Uma to find and hire expert talent leverage AI-powered work solutions and drive business transformation. With on-demand access to professionals spanning more than 10000 skills across AI & machine learning software development sales & marketing customer support finance & accounting and more Upwork enables businesses of all sizes to scale innovate and build agile teams for the age of AI and beyond.

Upwork’s platform has facilitated more than $25 billion in economic opportunity for talent around the world. Learn more at Upwork.com and follow us on LinkedIn Facebook Instagram TikTok and X .

As a Lead AI Engineer on our Data Platform & Services (DPS) team you will apply your expertise in AI capabilities to build and deploy production grade AI powered systems towards data engineering analytics & product evolution use cases.  You’ll design and deploy agentic frameworks natural language querying (NLQ) capabilities and prompt/LLM evaluation strategies that unlock insights at scale across Upwork. This is an opportunity to deliver tangible impact enabling faster decision-making democratizing data access and empowering analysts product teams and stakeholders throughout the company.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement scalable agentic frameworks that coordinate multiple AI agents to deliver accurate and reliable outcomes.

• Build and optimize natural language query solutions that provide compliant intuitive and self-service access to enterprise data.

• Develop and maintain evaluation frameworks for LLMs and prompts driving measurable improvements in accuracy scalability and resilience.

• Partner with data engineering peers to integrate AI orchestration with Python SQL and Snowflake pipelines.

• Contribute to AI-powered summarization and explanation tools that enhance reporting insights and executive reviews.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with product analytics and business teams to ensure solutions meet measurable business goals.

What it takes to catch our eye

• Proven experience delivering AI-powered data systems in production including hands-on expertise with LLMs and prompt engineering.

• Strong foundation in modern data engineering with proficiency in Python SQL and platforms such as Snowflake.

• Demonstrated ability to design agentic orchestration frameworks that scale across diverse business scenarios.

• A collaborative problem-solver with strong communication skills able to align stakeholders and create clarity across teams.

• Growth mindset excited to learn iterate and deliver measurable business outcomes through applied AI.

Come change how the world works.

At Upwork you’ll shape the future of work for a global remote-first workforce creating economic opportunities for professionals worldwide. While we have a physical office in Palo Alto we currently hire full-time employees in 34 U.S. states making it easier than ever to join our mission from wherever you call home.

Our culture is built on trust risk-taking customer focus and excellence all in service of our core mission: to create economic opportunities so people have better lives. We embrace authenticity and inclusion encouraging everyone to bring their whole selves to work. Personal and professional growth is a priority here supported through development programs mentorship and our Upwork Belonging Communities.

We’re proud to offer benefits that go beyond the basics including comprehensive medical coverage for you and your family unlimited PTO a 401(k) plan with matching 12 weeks of paid parental leave and an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. Visit our Life at Upwork page to learn more about our values working principles and the overall employee experience.

Ready to help shape the future of work? Check out our Careers page to learn more about opportunities at Upwork.

Upwork is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce. We do not discriminate based on race religion color national origin gender (including pregnancy childbirth or related medical conditions) sexual orientation gender identity gender expression age status as a protected veteran status as an individual with a disability genetic information or other legally protected characteristics under federal state or local law.

Please note that a criminal background check may be required once a conditional job offer is made. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered in accordance with applicable law including the California Fair Chance Act and local Fair Chance ordinances.

The annual base salary range for this position  is displayed below. The range displayed reflects the minimum and maximum salary for this position and individual base pay will depend on your skills qualifications experience and location. Additionally this position is eligible for the annual bonus plan or sales incentive plan and eligibility to participate in our long term equity incentive program.

Annual Base Compensation

$151500—$215500 USD