About Upstart
At Upstart, we’re united by a mission that matters: to radically reduce the cost and complexity of borrowing for all Americans. Every day, we bring creativity, experimentation, and advanced AI to reshape access to credit, helping millions move forward financially with clarity and confidence.
As the leading AI lending marketplace, we partner with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit through technology that’s both radically intelligent and deeply human. Our platform runs over one million predictions per borrower using more than 1,800 signals, powering smarter, fairer decisions for millions of customers. But the numbers only hint at the impact. Every idea, every voice, and every contribution moves us closer to a world where credit never stands between people and their financial progress.
We’re proudly digital-first, giving most Upstarters the flexibility to do their best work from wherever they thrive, alongside teammates across 80+ cities in the US and Canada. Digital-first doesn’t mean distant. We’re intentional about in-person connection through team onsites, planning sessions, and moments that spark creativity and trust. And whether you choose to work primarily from home or collaborate in-person from one of our offices in Columbus, Austin, the Bay Area, or New York City (opening Summer 2026), you’ll have the support to work in the way that works best for you.
If you’re energized by tackling meaningful problems, excited to innovate with purpose, and motivated by work that truly matters, we’d love to hear from you.
The Team:
Upstart’s Verifications Decisioning team builds core capabilities that i) efficiently deliver online data sources for consumption by Machine Learning (ML) models to improve loan performance and ii) automate decisioning of applications using ML-driven rules to reduce friction and prevent fraud. Upstart has one of the lowest fraud rates in the industry and highest level of automation. This means that the majority of applicants can receive their funds in under 24 hours after they apply. Looking ahead, Verifications need to further push the boundaries of automation doubling down on initiatives that accelerate accuracy of ML models while extending those benefits beyond its flagship Personal Loans business to emerging products such as HELOC, Auto, and Small Dollar loans.
As a Software Engineer at Upstart, you will build services to integrate with new data sources, implement and maintain highly scalable gRPC APIs for internal teams to access data, and partner closely with stakeholders to ensure data quality standards are met and ensured through thorough testing frameworks. These efforts will contribute in accelerating improvements to ML models using richer and more reliable data sources.
How you’ll make an impact
- Work closely with cross-functional teams to understand business goals and translate them into technical requirements.
- Develop robust, high-performance services that enable real-time data retrieval and decisioning.
- Optimize and refactor code for scalability and efficiency, ensuring low-latency responses.
- Maintain and evolve our API infrastructure to support the growing volume of products and integrations.
- Ensure the quality and reliability of ML models by writing unit and integration tests, participating in code reviews, and monitoring production systems.
Minimum Qualifications
- 3+ years of professional software development experience building scalable public or consumer-facing web and/or mobile products displaying a passion for user-experience, and a product-first mindset.
- High level of proficiency coding in production with Python, Kotlin and/or Ruby on Rails.
- Exhibits a growth mindset - you’re not afraid to pick up new technologies that are best for the task, and learn from others.
- Excellent communication skills, able to explain complex technical topics to non-technical stakeholders.
- Extreme ownership of your work with a problem solving mindset, comfortability persevering through ambiguity without delegating the hard part to others
Preferred Qualifications
- You thrive in environments where you are expected to think like an owner and make decisions like one.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills. You are able to tailor your communication style to fit the needs of the audience.
- Contributes to the open-source community, educates others on software development best practices, or spends time outside of work staying up with the latest trends in modern software development.
- Knowledge of, or hands-on experience utilizing advanced CI/CD technologies with a focus on infrastructure/everything as code.
- You are the go-to person for an important domain on your current or previous team, and love to teach others about it.
Position location This role is available in the following locations: Remote, San Mateo, Columbus, Austin.
Travel requirements As a digital first company, the majority of your work can be accomplished remotely. The majority of our employees can live and work anywhere in the U.S but are encouraged to to still spend high quality time in-person collaborating via regular onsites. The in-person sessions’ cadence varies depending on the team and role; most teams meet once or twice per quarter for 2-4 consecutive days at a time.
#LI-REMOTE
#LI-Associate
At Upstart, your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic location–with our “digital first” philosophy, Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.
In addition, Upstart provides employees with target bonuses, equity compensation, and generous benefits packages (including medical, dental, vision, and 401k).
What you'll love
At Upstart, our benefits are designed to support your health, financial well-being, family, and personal growth. Here’s what you can expect:
- Competitive compensation, including base pay, bonus opportunities, and annual equity grants that vest quarterly
- Generous 401(k) plan with Upstart matching $2 for every $1 contributed, up to $15,000 per year
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) with discounted stock purchase options for eligible employees
- Affordable medical, dental, and vision coverage, with multiple plan options - Upstart covers 90% to 100% of the cost depending on the plans you choose
- Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart for eligible plans
- Income protection benefits, including company-paid Basic Life, AD&D, and Short- and Long-Term Disability coverage, with options to purchase supplemental coverage
- Paid time off, sick and safe time, and company holidays
- Paid family and parental leave to support caregiving and major life moments
- Family-centered benefits through Carrot and Cleo, supporting fertility, parenthood, and caregiving
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offering mental health support and life-centered resources
- Financial wellness resources, including access to financial planning tools and a financial concierge service
- Annual wellness allowance to support your physical and emotional well-being and personal development, based on what matters most to you
- Annual productivity allowance to invest in relevant tools and resources you need to do your best work, no matter where you work from
- Connection and community through team events and onsites, all-company updates, and employee resource groups (ERGs)
- Onsite perks, including catered lunches and fully stocked micro-kitchens when working from one of our four offices, located in the Bay Area, Austin, Columbus, and New York City (opening Summer 2026!).
Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. Just as we are dedicated to improving access to affordable credit for all, we are committed to inclusive and fair hiring practices.
If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please email [email protected]
https://www.upstart.com/candidate_privacy_policy
Top Skills
What the Team is Saying
What We Do
Upstart is the leading AI lending marketplace, connecting millions of consumers to more than 100 banks and credit unions that leverage Upstart’s AI models and cloud applications to deliver superior credit products. With Upstart's AI, lenders can approve more borrowers at lower rates across races, ages, and genders, while delivering the exceptional digital-first experience customers demand. More than 80% of borrowers are approved instantly, with zero documentation to upload. Founded in 2012, Upstart’s platform includes personal loans, automotive retail and refinance loans, home equity lines of credit, and small-dollar “relief” loans.
If you are energized by the impact you think you could make at Upstart, we'd love to hear from you!
Why Work With Us
Connection to our mission creates a special environment where people feel passionately about the impact they make in the world. Upstart is fast-paced, and we encourage ownership at all levels of the organization. As a result, culture at Upstart is driven by Upstarters. Upstarters are proactive, talented, multi-dimensional and collaborative.
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Upstart Offices
Remote Workspace
Employees work remotely.
Upstart has a digital-first model enabling most Upstarters can live and work anywhere in the U.S. We also offer in-person options from our office locations in San Mateo, California; Columbus, Ohio; Austin, Texas; and New York City, NY.
