US Companies Tap into Latin American Talent with Revelo & AI

Latin American Developers in High Demand for AI Post-Training

Despite a growing trend of tech companies requiring employees to return to physical offices and prioritizing in-person team building, a significant increase in the sourcing of developer talent from Latin America is being observed. This is particularly true for roles focused on post-training of Artificial Intelligence models.

Surge in Demand for LLM Training Experts

Revelo, a platform connecting U.S. companies with vetted Latin American developers, reports a notable upswing in requests for engineers specializing in Large Language Model (LLM) training. According to Revelo’s co-founder and CEO, Lucas Mendes, this demand is being driven by the evolving landscape of AI development.

Mendes explained that the current focus is on refining LLMs with high-quality, expert human data to enhance their performance on specific, valuable tasks. Coding is identified as a key area where this human input is crucial, leading companies building foundational models to seek engineers capable of providing this data and improving LLM coding capabilities.

Revenue and Specific Skillset Requests

In 2024, LLM training-related hires represented 22% of Revelo’s total revenue. Companies are frequently seeking specialists in particular coding languages to address gaps in their existing post-training processes.

Revelo currently provides personnel to prominent U.S. enterprises such as Intuit, Oracle, and Dell, as well as “nearly every major hyperscale AI provider.”

Competition and Market Growth

Revelo is not alone in facilitating connections between U.S. firms and Latin American programmers. Companies like Terminal, Tecla, and Near share a similar objective.

This demand for post-training expertise represents the latest growth trend for Revelo, which was established in late 2014 to address a tight talent market.

Revelo's Origins and Expansion

Lucas Mendes and Lachlan de Crespigny founded Revelo with the belief that a vetted network of Brazilian talent would provide companies with access to the skilled professionals they needed. This concept proved successful, attracting over $48 million in venture funding from firms including Social Capital, FJ Labs, and Valor Capital Group.

The company subsequently expanded its operations beyond Brazil to encompass the wider Latin American region.

Impact of the Pandemic and Remote Work

The Covid-19 pandemic significantly broadened Revelo’s potential reach. U.S. companies discovered the viability of high-quality, distributed teams, with Latin American engineers offering a compelling balance of skill and cost. Initial pilot hires often led to requests for larger teams.

Despite the recent shift back towards in-office work within the tech industry, Revelo has continued to experience growth. Mendes noted that demand for Latin American talent has remained strong, defying the prevailing trend.

Nearshoring Advantage

Mendes attributes this sustained demand to the “nearshoring” nature of Revelo’s talent pool. The geographical proximity and shared time zones with client companies in the U.S. make these hires particularly attractive.

Strategic Acquisitions and Future Outlook

Demonstrating its commitment to growth, Revelo has acquired five competitors focused on Latin American talent in the past 30 months, including Alto and Paretisa, announced in March.

“We’re building that global talent backbone for the age of AI and there will be more acquisitions in the future,” Mendes stated, signaling continued expansion and investment in the region.