Product Owner

Calling All Upstarters!

PRODUCT OWNER WANTED!

We are Upstart 13. We are humble, hungry, and competent people who are radically changing the expectations and experience of outsourcing for all participants by challenging barriers that create inequality and by bringing down borders in technology for people everywhere. We’re all about delivering value and doing big things. We have become a game-changer for teams around the world who look to Upstart’s services as a differentiator.

Job Description:

We are looking for a Product Owner with strong end‑to‑end product delivery experience who can lead AI‑powered initiatives from discovery through launch. This role combines classic PO responsibilities—backlog ownership, requirement definition, stakeholder alignment—with hands‑on oversight of AI features such as LLM‑based workflows and RAG-driven experiences. The ideal candidate is comfortable with ambiguity, strong in discovery, and skilled at shaping AI behavior into reliable, user‑focused product capabilities.

Responsibilities:   

Product Ownership

• Own the product backlog, ensuring clear prioritization aligned with business value and user needs.

• Lead discovery to translate ambiguous client needs into actionable epics and user stories.

• Define requirements, acceptance criteria, and non‑functional expectations for both AI and non‑AI features.

• Collaborate closely with engineering, design, and data teams to ensure solutions are feasible and aligned with product goals.

• Communicate product vision, progress, risks, and decisions to stakeholders.

• Guide sprint planning, backlog refinement, and roadmap execution.

AI-Focused Responsibilities

• Drive delivery of AI-powered features, ensuring they are reliable, safe, and aligned with user expectations.

• Apply AI UX principles such as human‑in‑the‑loop, confidence scoring, and graceful failure states.

• Define AI‑specific acceptance criteria including evaluation metrics, edge cases, and hallucination-handling rules.

• Work with engineering/data teams to assess model performance and guide iteration.

• Monitor shipped AI features to ensure accuracy, quality, and user adoption.

Qualifications

Experience:

• Proven experience shipping AI-powered features (LLMs, RAG, or similar) from concept to production.

• Strong understanding of AI UX patterns such as confidence scoring, human‑in‑the‑loop flows, and graceful failure states.

• Ability to write AI‑specific acceptance criteria, including evaluation metrics, edge cases, and hallucination-handling rules.

• Comfortable leading discovery in ambiguous environments, translating unclear client needs into structured backlog items.

• Familiar with RAG architecture basics, vector search, embeddings, and prompt design.

• Able to partner with engineering/data teams to evaluate model behavior, output quality, and iteration needs.

• Strong grounding in API-based integrations and the technical constraints of AI systems (latency, cost, token limits).

• Experience defining functional, non-functional, and data requirements for AI and backend features (performance, reliability, error handling).

• Proficiency using product delivery tools (Jira, Azure DevOps, Linear) to manage complex technical backlogs, dependencies, and release workflows.

Bonus skills:

• Strong PM instincts for pushing through blockers, securing access (e.g., HubSpot), and ensuring client accountability.

• Experience with prompt engineering or AI evaluation frameworks.

• Familiarity with CRM platforms or integrations.

• Background in UX research or responsible AI principles.

Soft skills:

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

• Ability to create clarity from ambiguity and guide clients through evolving requirements.

• Strong facilitation and problem‑solving skills.

• Collaborative mindset with the ability to work effectively with engineering, design, and data teams.

• Ownership mentality with a proactive approach to resolving blockers.

Why Upstart13?

• We put people first at Upstart 13! We believe the world is filled with amazing people and we are willing to go to great lengths to seek out others who share our values to join our cause of bringing down borders in technology for people everywhere.

• We develop leaders at Upstart 13, we focus on what matters to do meaningful work, we own our shit, we stay curious, and we understand responsibility leads to giving. We do big things together!

Perks:

• Job type: a long-term, full-time job.

• Fully remote.

• USD competitive salary.

• 20+ Paid time off days.

Are you ready to join our cause? Be sure to ask, “Why 13?”