Introduction: A Shift in Hiring Trends
As many tech giants push for employees to return to physical offices, a seemingly contradictory hiring trend is gaining momentum: U.S. companies are aggressively expanding their remote development teams—particularly in Latin America. What’s fueling this shift? The demand for skilled engineers capable of supporting post-training large language models (LLMs).
Companies developing foundational AI models now need engineers who can fine-tune these systems through expert human input. And they’re increasingly turning to Latin America’s rich talent pool to meet this need.
The Role of Post-Training in the AI Revolution
Post-training is the phase that follows the initial large-scale training of an AI model, such as an LLM. At this stage, human experts play a critical role in fine-tuning model behavior for high-value tasks—especially coding, data labeling, and reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF).
Lucas Mendes, CEO of Revelo, a platform connecting vetted Latin American developers with U.S. companies, notes that this specific demand now accounts for 22% of Revelo’s total revenue in 2024. Mendes states, “There’s a race for data—especially expert human data—that can help LLMs perform specific, complex tasks more effectively.”
Companies aren’t just hiring developers—they’re recruiting coding experts who can teach LLMs to write better code through hands-on collaboration.
Why Latin America? The Talent and Time Zone Advantage
Latin America (LatAm) has emerged as an ideal region for nearshore outsourcing for several reasons:
Time Zone Compatibility: Developers in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia share overlapping work hours with U.S. teams, enabling real-time collaboration.
Cost-Effective Expertise: Compared to hiring within the U.S., LatAm talent provides a highly attractive quality-to-cost ratio.
Deep Talent Pool: Platforms like Revelo boast access to over 400,000 developers skilled in Python, JavaScript, and AI frameworks.
Mendes emphasizes that Latin American hires aren’t viewed as traditional offshoring but rather as nearshoring—a critical distinction that helps build trust, agility, and long-term engagement.
Revelo’s Rise: A LatAm Talent Powerhouse
Founded in 2014 by Lucas Mendes and Lachlan de Crespigny, Revelo identified the growing gap in technical hiring early on. What started as a Brazilian-focused initiative quickly scaled across Latin America. The company has since raised $48+ million in venture capital, attracting backing from investors like Social Capital and FJ Labs.
Today, Revelo supplies engineers to major U.S. enterprises, including Intuit, Oracle, and Dell, and collaborates with almost every major hyperscale AI provider. Their ability to vet talent and manage payment logistics across borders has become indispensable for businesses scaling AI efforts rapidly.
“We’re building that global talent backbone for the age of AI,” Mendes said, hinting at future acquisitions after merging with five LatAm competitors in the last 30 months.
Post-Pandemic Momentum and the Remote Work Legacy
Although hybrid and in-office policies are returning, the remote hiring momentum—supercharged by the COVID-19 pandemic—has not entirely subsided. During the pandemic, U.S. companies discovered that distributed teams could deliver exceptional results, especially when supported by tools and talent networks like Revelo.
That experience reshaped hiring strategies permanently. Many firms now retain or expand their remote-first engineering teams, often starting with one or two developers and scaling up based on performance.
Beyond Revelo: A Growing Competitive Landscape
Revelo isn’t alone in this space. Other companies such as Tecla, Terminal, and Near are also helping U.S. firms tap into the Latin American development market. The surge in demand for post-training expertise is creating a highly competitive, rapidly growing industry.
This evolution isn’t just a talent shift—it’s a structural transformation in how AI teams are built.
Implications for Tech Companies and Entrepreneurs
For entrepreneurs, product managers, and CTOs, the message is clear: the AI boom isn’t just about big models and datasets. It’s also about access to the right human expertise—especially during the critical post-training stage.
Hiring globally, particularly in nearshore regions like LatAm, allows startups and SMEs to:
Scale quickly without the burden of high domestic salaries.
Access niche talent in AI and software engineering.
Maintain operational flexibility during uncertain economic periods.
To stay competitive, your hiring strategy must align with both technical needs and geographic opportunity.
Conclusion: The Future of Nearshore AI Talent
The AI revolution has entered a new chapter—one where human expertise is essential to guiding and refining machine intelligence. With nearshore talent from Latin America playing a pivotal role in post-training LLMs, companies that embrace remote collaboration now will outpace those that don’t.
As the global economy continues to adapt, the integration of LatAm developers into core U.S. tech teams signals not just a trend, but a long-term strategic shift. The question is no longer if your team should go remote—but how quickly you can do it.
