The Heartbeat of Revelo: Latin America’s Tech Talent Fuels U.S. AI Dreams

I can almost feel the buzz in the air—U.S. tech companies are racing to build the future, and they’re turning to Latin America with a spark of excitement. While some are calling their teams back to sleek office spaces, craving that in-person vibe, there’s a quieter revolution happening. Companies are scouring Latin America for developers who can breathe life into AI models, especially after they’ve been trained. It’s like finding the perfect ingredient to make a dish sing, and Revelo, a platform bursting with vetted Latin American talent, is at the heart of it.

Lucas Mendes, Revelo’s co-founder and CEO, can barely contain his enthusiasm when he talks about it. “There’s this hunger for coders who can fine-tune large language models (LLMs) for specific, high-stakes tasks,” he shared with TechCrunch, his voice brimming with pride. With over 400,000 developers on their platform, Revelo isn’t just connecting talent to jobs—it’s streamlining the whole process, from hiring to payments, for U.S. companies. And right now, the demand is electric.

This isn’t just a trend; it’s the next chapter of the AI story. “It’s a race for human expertise,” Mendes says, his eyes lighting up. “Companies building foundational AI models need engineers who can teach these models to code better.” Last year alone, hires for LLM training made up 22% of Revelo’s revenue—a number that feels like a high-five to their mission. Whether it’s a company needing a Python wizard or a JavaScript guru to fill a gap, Revelo’s talent pool is ready to answer the call.

Big names like Intuit, Oracle, and Dell are already on board, along with nearly every major AI hyperscale provider. But Revelo isn’t alone in this space—companies like Terminal, Tecla, and Near are also bridging the gap between U.S. firms and Latin American programmers. Still, Revelo’s story feels personal, like a dream that’s grown wings.

Mendes and his co-founder, Lachlan de Crespigny, started Revelo in 2014 with a flicker of hope. Back then, the tech world was a battlefield for talent, and they believed Brazil’s developers could shine if given the chance. “We thought, let’s build a network of vetted talent and make it easy for companies to find them,” Mendes recalls, a nostalgic smile creeping in. That bet paid off. Revelo raised over $48 million from heavyweights like Social Capital and FJ Labs, expanding from Brazil to all of Latin America.

Then came the pandemic, and everything changed. “It was like a door swung wide open,” Mendes says, still amazed. U.S. companies, suddenly open to remote work, discovered the magic of Latin American talent. “They’d hire one or two developers, fall in love with their work, and come back saying, ‘We need more!’” The quality-to-cost ratio was a revelation, and Revelo’s platform became a go-to.

Even as the tech world shifts back to office life, Revelo’s momentum hasn’t slowed. Mendes chuckles, almost defiant: “I hate to go against the hype, but the demand for our talent is still soaring.” He believes it’s because Latin American developers are more like “nearshore” partners, working in the same time zones as their U.S. clients. It’s a connection that feels seamless, almost like they’re in the same room.

The demand is so strong that Revelo has snapped up five competitors in the last two and a half years, including Alto and Paretisa this March. “We’re building the backbone for global talent in the AI era,” Mendes says, his voice steady with conviction. “And there’s more to come.”

It’s hard not to feel inspired by Revelo’s journey—a story of grit, vision, and the quiet power of Latin America’s tech talent lighting up the world’s AI revolution.