About Upstart
Upstart is the leading AI lending marketplace partnering with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit. By leveraging Upstart's AI marketplace, Upstart-powered banks and credit unions can have higher approval rates and lower loss rates across races, ages, and genders, while simultaneously delivering the exceptional digital-first lending experience their customers demand. More than 80% of borrowers are approved instantly, with zero documentation to upload.
Upstart is a digital-first company, which means that most Upstarters live and work anywhere in the United States. However, we also have offices in San Mateo, California; Columbus, Ohio; and Austin, Texas.
Most Upstarters join us because they connect with our mission of enabling access to effortless credit based on true risk. If you are energized by the impact you can make at Upstart, we’d love to hear from you!
As a Principal Mobile Software Engineer at Upstart, you’ll sit at the intersection of mobile platform and product development. You’ll lead efforts to scale and refine our React Native architecture while partnering closely with product, design, and backend teams to ship impactful, high-quality features.
You’ll define technical direction, improve developer experience, and mentor other engineers — all while helping Upstart grow into a truly mobile-first company. This is a highly cross-functional role with visibility across the stack and deep influence on how we build and deliver mobile software.You’ll play a key role in shaping how mobile is built and scaled at Upstart — helping define mobile as a core product pillar and driving impact across teams and surfaces.
The TeamThe Mobile team at Upstart is building the future of our user experience. Today, we have a live iOS app built in React Native, and we’re actively planning our Android expansion. Our platform is still early-stage, which means there's a huge opportunity to influence architecture, best practices, performance, and product velocity.
We move quickly, collaborate tightly with backend and design, and care deeply about quality — not just in the UI, but in the systems that power a great user experience.
What You’ll Do- Drive technical strategy for our mobile apps — from platform architecture to product scalability and developer experience.
- Build foundational systems in React Native that enable fast, high-quality feature development across both iOS and Android.
- Collaborate with product and design to scope, implement, and launch user-facing features that align with company goals.
- Bridge mobile and backend systems by shaping APIs and improving client-server interaction patterns.
- Identify friction in the mobile development lifecycle and lead improvements to tooling, modularization, CI, and testing strategies.
- Mentor engineers and help grow a culture of ownership, technical rigor, and continuous learning.
- Influence both product and platform direction as we scale our mobile efforts across multiple surfaces and teams.
- Support company goals such as improving user engagement, increasing retention, and unlocking new growth channels through mobile innovation.
- Help define and uphold the engineering culture, patterns, and practices that guide mobile development at Upstart.
- Have 8+ years of professional software development experience, including meaningful contributions to production mobile apps.
- Have built and maintained features in both React Native and at least one native platform (e.g., Swift/Objective-C for iOS or Kotlin/Java for Android).
- Understand the nuances of mobile performance, memory management, and platform-specific challenges.
- Have led architecture planning and helped engineering teams make informed tradeoffs.
- Communicate early and often with cross-functional partners in product, design, backend, and QA to ensure alignment and shared understanding.
- Take ownership of your work from design through delivery, and value long-term thinking over quick fixes.
- Appreciate the strength of diverse perspectives and thrive on being part of an inclusive, collaborative team.
- Embrace a growth mindset, value mentorship, and enjoy helping others grow.
- Have supported or led the migration of native apps to React Native, or introduced native modules into React Native codebases.
- Have supported or led the introduction of React Native on the Android platform.
- Are comfortable working with TypeScript or custom native modules.
- Have experience working at a company where mobile is a primary user touchpoint.
- Have built or scaled mobile systems like push notifications, deep linking, analytics, or A/B testing frameworks.
- Enjoy building platforms that empower other developers to move faster and ship with confidence.
Position Location - This role is available in the following locations: Remote, San Mateo, Columbus, Austin
Time Zone Requirements - This team operates across all U.S. time zones.
Travel Requirements - This team has regular on-site collaboration sessions. These occur 3 days per quarter at an Upstart office. If you need to travel to make these meetups, Upstart will cover all travel related expenses.
What You'll Love:
- Competitive Compensation (base + bonus & equity)
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart
- 401(k) with 100% company match up to $4,500 and immediate vesting and after-tax savings
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
- Life and disability insurance
- Generous holiday, vacation, sick and safety leave
- Supportive parental, family care, and military leave programs
- Annual wellness, technology & ergonomic reimbursement programs
- Social activities including team events and onsites, all-company updates, employee resource groups (ERGs), and other interest groups such as book clubs, fitness, investing, and volunteering
- Catered lunches + snacks & drinks when working in offices
#LI-REMOTE
#LI-MidSenior
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).
Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. We are dedicated to ensuring that underrepresented classes receive better access to affordable credit, and are just as committed to embracing diversity and inclusion in our hiring practices. We celebrate all cultures, backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences, and know that we can only become better together.
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
Similar Jobs at Upstart
What you need to know about the Los Angeles Tech Scene
Key Facts About Los Angeles Tech
- Number of Tech Workers: 375,800; 5.5% of overall workforce (2024 CompTIA survey)
- Major Tech Employers: Snap, Netflix, SpaceX, Disney, Google
- Key Industries: Artificial intelligence, adtech, media, software, game development
- Funding Landscape: $11.6 billion in venture capital funding in 2024 (Pitchbook)
- Notable Investors: Strong Ventures, Fifth Wall, Upfront Ventures, Mucker Capital, Kittyhawk Ventures
- Research Centers and Universities: California Institute of Technology, UCLA, University of Southern California, UC Irvine, Pepperdine, California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, Center for Quantum Science and Engineering
