Product Manager, AI

Upwork Inc.’s (Nasdaq: UPWK) family of companies connects businesses with global, AI-enabled talent across every contingent work type including freelance, fractional, and payrolled. This portfolio includes the Upwork Marketplace, which connects businesses with on-demand access to highly skilled talent across the globe, and Lifted, which provides a purpose-built solution for enterprise organizations to source, contract, manage, and pay talent across the full spectrum of contingent work. From Fortune 100 enterprises to entrepreneurs, businesses rely on Upwork Inc. to find and hire expert talent, leverage AI-powered work solutions, and drive business transformation. With access to professionals spanning more than 10,000 skills across AI & machine learning, software development, sales & marketing, customer support, finance & accounting, and more, the Upwork family of companies enables businesses of all sizes to scale, innovate, and transform their workforces for the age of AI and beyond.

Since its founding, Upwork Inc. has facilitated more than $30 billion in total transactions and services as it fulfills its purpose to create opportunity in every era of work. Learn more about the Upwork Marketplace at upwork.com and follow on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X; and learn more about Lifted at go-lifted.com and follow on LinkedIn.

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The AI Categories team operates like a startup within Upwork, identifying and scaling new growth opportunities that expand our core marketplace. We move quickly, test bold ideas, and use data to determine what should scale. The AI Categories team focuses on how AI-related skills and services are structured, surfaced, and grown across the platform, one of Upwork’s most strategic and fast-evolving segments.

As a Product Manager on the AI Categories team, you will drive measurable growth across the AI talent funnel, from discovery and relevance to engagement and conversion. You will own defined problem spaces, lead experiments end to end, and partner closely with Engineering, Design, Data, Marketing, and Operations to ship improvements that impact real metrics. This role is ideal for a growth-minded product manager who is energized by ambiguity, motivated by seeing experiments ship, and eager to deepen product craft while learning from senior leaders.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end product initiatives within the AI Categories domain, defining clear problem statements, hypotheses, success metrics, and experiment plans that drive measurable funnel improvement.
  
  

• Translate ambiguous growth opportunities into structured roadmaps and prioritized backlogs, breaking complex problems into actionable milestones that ship iteratively.
  
  

• Design and run experiments that improve discovery, relevance, engagement, or conversion across AI-related categories, using data to inform decisions and course-correct quickly.
  
  

• Partner cross-functionally with Engineering, Design, Data Science, and Marketing to deliver high-quality launches on time and hold stakeholders accountable to shared outcomes.
  
  

• Analyze user behavior, marketplace dynamics, and AI talent trends to surface new insights and recommend scalable solutions that impact customer satisfaction and business growth.
  
  

• Communicate progress, learnings, and trade-offs clearly to stakeholders through structured updates, experiment readouts, and executive-ready presentations.
  
  

What it takes to catch our eye

• Experience contributing to product initiatives in a SaaS, marketplace, or platform environment, with evidence of shipping experiments or features that improved measurable metrics.
  
  

• Strong analytical thinking and comfort working with data to evaluate experiments, identify patterns, and translate insights into action.
  
  

• Practical fluency with AI concepts and tools, including large language models, and experience integrating AI into product discovery, experimentation, or workflow optimization.
  
  

• Ability to operate independently within defined scope, navigate ambiguity with a resourceful mindset, and seek input thoughtfully when tackling new challenges.
  
  

• Energized by ambiguity and motivated by shipping experiments that drive real impact, with a demonstrated hunger to grow as a product leader and take on increasing ownership over time.
  
  

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Upwork is establishing an operational hub in Toronto, Canada. The new office is expected to be fully operational by Q4 2026. This role will require 3 days in office once we have an office open.

This position will initially be employed through a partner to ensure a seamless hiring process while we establish the hub. Once the hub is established, there may be opportunities to transition to employment with Upwork, depending on business needs and other requirements. While employed by the partner, you’ll work as part of Upwork’s team, with access to our resources, culture, and growth opportunities.

Our partner will offer competitive benefits. When Upwork’s hub is established, we will be excited to offer employment and benefits directly as business needs require. 

Upwork is committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workforce. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law.

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