Software Engineer — Agentic Search Systems
Mercor • Remote
Education
Any
Type
hourly
Pay Rate (by country)
$80–$150/hr
Listed
Today
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What We Know About This Role
- Interview
- Required i As stated in the listing: “This is a 25-minute conversational interview.”
About this Role
From the Mercor listing
We're looking for engineers who have shipped production search systems (especially agentic ones now that we're in the era of LLMs and agents) and are thinking hard about the requirements and optimizations of those systems.
You've probably:
Owned relevance or retrieval on a system real users depended on
Decided how to quantify impact and improvements with these systems.
Built out systems related to agentic search.
Scaled data infrastructure to power modern search systems.
This is a 25-minute conversational interview. No coding, no take-home. We want to hear how you actually think about search quality, evaluation, and the tradeoffs you've made in real systems. Bring war stories — the messier and more specific, the better.
If your interview stands out, we'll follow up with a paid 30-minute live conversation with our team — $200 for your time, paid on completion of the call.
If that sounds like you, apply and complete the interview. We review every submission.
Requirements
- Must be eligible to work in Remote
- Fluent proficiency in English (Written & Verbal)
- Reliable high-speed internet connection
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience
- Demonstrated expertise in Software Engineering
Why This Role
Few remote roles pay $115/hr for Software Engineering judgment on your own schedule. As a Software Engineer — Agentic Search Systems, this is that role: real income, flexible hours, and direct exposure to how AI labs are building the next generation of models.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Mercor for freelancers or full-time contractors?
Mercor places you with one client for a defined engagement, like 'Python Tutor for 3 months', rather than having you grab small tasks from a shared queue. Most roles function as steady contract work, not one-off gigs.
Does Mercor's application require an on-camera interview?
Yes, every applicant records a video interview with an AI interviewer that asks questions about your resume. Clients review that recording to judge communication skills before matching, so there's no way to apply without going on camera.
Does it cost money to apply to Mercor?
No, applying and joining Mercor is free. Mercor's revenue comes from a fee it charges the client on top of your hourly rate, not from applicants. Treat any request for payment to join as a red flag.
Is AI training work the same as traditional consulting?
No. Instead of client deliverables, you're given complex scenarios to evaluate: grading the AI's logic, correcting its hallucinations, and supplying expert-level reasoning it doesn't have on its own. The job is closer to teaching than consulting.
Why do these AI training roles pay so much?
Because general knowledge isn't what's being tested. The model already knows the basics; what it needs is expertise on edge cases, the rare, difficult, highly technical judgment calls only a senior professional in the field would make correctly.
What does the day-to-day workload look like for elite-expert AI training roles?
Slow and deep, not fast and repetitive. A single task can take 45-60 minutes of researching citations or verifying complex calculations. Quality is what's being measured here, not throughput.
What does Software Engineering work look like for a Software Engineer — Agentic Search Systems?
Tasks here are scoped to Software Engineering, not generic labeling. As a Software Engineer — Agentic Search Systems, expect to draw on real domain judgment (evaluating outputs, correcting errors, or providing expert reasoning specific to Software Engineering) rather than following a one-size-fits-all rubric. If you don't have hands-on Software Engineering background, this is likely not the right listing to start with.
What happens when I click Apply on this listing?
You'll be taken to Mercor's external site to complete your application there. This listing links through a referral, but the process is identical to applying directly; the link just routes you correctly. Create an account on their site and follow their onboarding steps.
Is there an interview?
Yes. This is a 25-minute conversational interview.
How soon will I start working after applying to Mercor?
Not immediately. Mercor is a talent marketplace, not a task queue, so applying puts you in a pool of candidates. You start working only once a specific client, like a major AI lab, selects your profile, and that matching process can take weeks.