As traditional tech firms push for a return to in-person operations, an unconventional trend is emerging in the hiring landscape: U.S. companies are increasingly seeking developer talent from Latin America, particularly for advancing AI initiatives. The insatiable appetite for experts who can enhance Large Language Model (LLM) training is at the forefront of this movement.
Revelo, a comprehensive platform that connects U.S. firms with vetted Latin American developers, reports a notable uptick in demand for engineers specializing in LLMs. Lucas Mendes, co-founder and CEO of Revelo, recently shared insights on this surge, highlighting how the ongoing evolution of AI is driving companies to seek expert human data to enhance the capabilities of their models. Mendes notes, “Coding is one of those high-value tasks that organizations are urgently trying to optimize. Last year, we witnessed substantial demand from firms developing foundational AI models seeking out specialized engineers to contribute valuable human data for improved LLM performance.”
Interestingly, LLM-related hires constituted an impressive 22% of Revelo’s revenue in 2024, underscoring the fast-growing need for skilled developers. Mendes states that companies are increasingly turning to Revelo to find specialists in various programming languages to bridge gaps in their ongoing post-training AI efforts.
Revelo’s roster includes significant clients like Intuit, Oracle, and Dell, along with several major hyperscale AI providers, who are all capitalizing on the talent pool Revelo has nurtured. This isn’t just a unique trend; firms such as Terminal, Tecla, and Near are also striving to connect American companies with talented Latin American programmers, as they too recognize the potential of this market.
Launched in 2014 amidst a fierce talent competition, Revelo quickly emerged as a solution for companies struggling to find the right tech talent in Brazil and beyond. Mendes and co-founder Lachlan de Crespigny created Revelo with a vision: to build a network of skilled, vetted developers that can ease the hiring process and meet the surge in demand.
The COVID-19 pandemic opened new doors for Revelo, expanding its reach considerably. Just as the world embraced remote work, U.S. companies began acknowledging the benefits of establishing distributed engineering teams, leveraging high-quality talent based in Latin America.
Although the post-pandemic shift has seen a push back towards in-office work, Revelo continues to flourish, largely due to the unique advantages offered by nearshoring. Developers in Latin America offer a time-zone alignment that makes collaboration more efficient and appealing than traditional offshoring.
With the rising demand, Revelo has acquired five competitors in the last couple of years, with plans for further acquisitions to consolidate their standing as a premier provider of Latino tech talent. Mendes confidently asserts, “We’re laying down the foundational talent network crucial for the age of AI, and we aim to grow it even further.”
In conclusion, as the tech industry navigates a transitional hiring landscape, the growing reliance on Latin American developers may redefine how companies approach talent acquisition in the AI space. This trend marks a significant shift, proving that despite the urge to return to traditional office environments, the demand for diverse talent continues to thrive, driven by robust technological advancements.