Contract: AI Productivity Solutions Engineer

Upwork ($UPWK) is the world’s work marketplace. We serve everyone from one-person startups to over 30% of the Fortune 100 with a powerful, trust-driven platform that enables companies and talent to work together in new ways that unlock their potential.  

Last year, more than $3.8 billion of work was done through Upwork by skilled professionals who are gaining more control by finding work they are passionate about and innovating their careers. 

This is an engagement through Upwork’s Hybrid Workforce Solutions (HWS) Team. Our Hybrid Workforce Solutions Team is a global group of professionals that support Upwork’s business. Our HWS team members are located all over the world.

In this role, you’ll shape the future of work by developing AI-powered applications and services that help our teams work smarter, faster, and more effectively. We believe AI should be a force multiplier for human talent, and we’re looking for an engineer who thrives at the intersection of software development, AI innovation, and business process optimization.

You will design and build server-side services, integrations, and user-facing applications that embed AI capabilities into the tools and workflows that power our business. You’ll also architect data pipelines, apply modern security practices, and experiment with emerging AI technologies to unlock new possibilities.

This role combines deep technical expertise, fluency in AI technologies (MCP, LLM APIs, prompt engineering), and a keen understanding of the tools and processes that drive productivity in a high-growth, global environment.

Work/Project Scope

• Design and develop AI-powered tools and applications to improve productivity across Upwork.
• Build and maintain scalable, secure, and reliable server-side services and APIs.
• Integrate AI technologies, LLMs, MCP, RAG, and other advanced architectures into workflows and business systems.
• Develop and maintain integrations with existing SaaS solutions via their APIs, leveraging integration platforms or custom connectors.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to identify pain points, map business processes, and design AI-driven solutions.
• Develop end-user applications that make AI capabilities intuitive and accessible to non-technical audiences.
• Create and manage ETL processes, pipelines, and data models for AI and analytics workloads.
• Prototype and experiment with emerging AI tools to evaluate potential business impact.
• Apply modern authentication and security practices, including OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, and SAML.
• Ensure operational excellence in the deployment, monitoring, and scaling of AI solutions.

Must Haves (Required Skills)

• Proven track record building production-grade server-side applications (Node.js, Python, or similar).
• Deep understanding of AI concepts, including LLM APIs, prompt engineering, MCP, and related frameworks.
• Experience designing integrations between AI solutions and enterprise tools (e.g., Google Workspace, Jira, Slack, Notion) via APIs or middleware platforms.
• Familiarity with SaaS ecosystem APIs and integration solutions.
• Understanding of modern authentication and security protocols, including OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, and SAML.
• Solid grounding in cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or Azure) and DevOps practices.
• Experience with ETL, data transformation, and working with large structured/unstructured datasets.
• Strong communication skills to translate technical concepts into business value.
• Ability to work autonomously on complex projects and deliver measurable outcomes.

Upwork is proudly committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce. We never discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. 

 Additionally, a criminal background check may be run on a candidate after a conditional offer to perform your services for Upwork 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.

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