Software Engineer (Codebase Deep Reasoning & Evaluation)

About the Role

Mercor is seeking software engineers to support one of the world’s leading AI labs in advancing code understanding and reasoning capabilities for next-generation machine learning models.

In this role, you’ll engage in real-world engineering work: analyzing large, production-grade repositories to create and evaluate technically challenging coding questions. You’ll systematically explore multiple modules, connect related functions across files, and assess how advanced AI systems reason about architecture, data flow, and performance.

Your ability to reason from evidence: citing specific files, functions, and line numbers will directly influence how these AI models learn to think like expert engineers.

⸻

You’re a Great Fit If You

• Have 4+ years of elite software engineering experience at top-tier startups, quantitative trading firms, hedge funds, or similar high-performance environments.

• Have experience using coding agents or LLMs as part of your engineering workflow (e.g., Copilot, Claude, GPT-4, or Replit Agents).

• Hold a Computer Science degree from a leading university or equivalent practical expertise.

• Are fluent in Python and JavaScript/TypeScript, and can comfortably read Java, Go, or other modern languages (Rust, C++, C#).

• Demonstrate systematic exploration, you examine multiple files and dependencies before forming conclusions.

• Practice evidence-based reasoning, grounding your answers in specific code references rather than assumptions.

• Excel at cross-file synthesis, connecting distributed logic to explain how systems work end-to-end.

• Show strong architectural understanding, identifying patterns, abstractions, and design choices in complex codebases.

• Display intellectual honesty: you acknowledge uncertainty when information is incomplete or ambiguous.

• Write clear, structured technical documentation, and communicate insights precisely and persuasively.

⸻

Example Projects & Domains

You may work across diverse systems, including:

• Web APIs and backend services

• CLI tools and data processing pipelines

• Frontend applications and DevOps tooling

• Security, observability, and performance-critical architectures

Each task will challenge your ability to connect architecture, dependencies, and logic across real-world repositories.

⸻

Engagement Details

This project will be a high-impact 24-hour sprint launching in the next 1–2 weeks.

• Compensation: Task-based pay (top performers previously earned $1,000+ during the sprint)

We consider all qualified applicants without regard to legally protected characteristics and provide reasonable accommodations upon request.

Contract and Payment Terms

• You will be engaged as an independent contractor.
• This is a fully remote role that can be completed on your own schedule.
• Projects can be extended, shortened, or concluded early depending on needs and performance.
• Your work at Mercor will not involve access to confidential or proprietary information from any employer, client, or institution.
• Payments are weekly on Stripe or Wise based on services rendered.
• Please note: We are unable to support H1-B or STEM OPT candidates at this time.

About Mercor

Mercor partners with leading AI labs and enterprises to train frontier models using human expertise. You will work on projects that focus on training and enhancing AI systems. You will be paid competitively, collaborate with leading researchers, and help shape the next generation of AI systems in your area of expertise.