Image

How to Hire an AI Agent Developer in 2025

Here's a guide to finding and vetting the best AI agent developer talent for your project

How to Hire an AI Agent Developer in 2025

The demand for AI agents is surging as businesses across industries seek intelligent systems that can automate tasks, enhance user experiences, and drive new business models.

If you’re an entrepreneur looking to build an AI agent but lack the technical expertise to develop one in-house, hiring the right AI agent developer is a critical step.

Here's a guide to finding and vetting the best talent for your project; from simple chat bots to crypto-powered trading agents.

What Type of AI Agent Developer Should I Hire?

An AI agent developer specializes in building intelligent systems or "agents" that can act autonomously, learn from interactions, and adapt to new scenarios.

These agents might power chatbots, decision-making tools, or even automated trading systems.

Depending on the type of product you are building, you'll want to look for different types of specialists:

AI Integrations Experts: Perfect for Building Apps & Automations

You don't need to be an ML engineer to be good at building AI-powered systems - that's because most AI agents are built using AI agent frameworks. These frameworks make it possible for many talented developers to create complex and useful agents, while leveraging existing models.

These experts are usually more affordable than ML engineers (see below) and are skilled at applying AI to real-world use cases.

Machine Learning Engineer: Required for Building Custom Models

While most AI agent use cases do not require training your own model, if your use case requires specialized understanding or training on proprietary data, having a machine learning engineer at your side will be necessary. ML engineers know how to train agents on new data,

ML engineers are in high demand, and usually employed for only the most advanced AI agent development projects with specialized requirements.

Before you seek an AI agent developer to help your team, make sure to know which type of developer you are looking for!

The Best Way to Hire an AI Agent Developer

1. Define Your Project Scope Clearly

Before searching for developers, define what your AI agent should achieve. Are you building a customer support bot, a trading agent, or an internal workflow automation tool? Clear goals help attract developers with the right expertise.

2. Prioritize Referrals

One of the best ways to find trustworthy developers is through referrals. Reach out to your professional network, particularly in the crypto and AI communities, to find developers with a proven track record. Referrals often lead you to professionals who have been vetted by peers.

3. If Referrals Fail, Leverage Online Platforms and Communities

  • Freelance Platforms: Websites like Upwork or Toptal allow you to filter for AI specialists and review their past work.
  • Tech Communities: Participate in AI-focused forums, Discord groups, or GitHub communities. Developers active in these spaces often showcase their expertise and engage with cutting-edge tools.
  • Conferences and Meetups: AI-focused events are great places to connect with skilled developers and understand the latest trends.

4. Contact Agencies With A Track Record

Search for AI agent development agencies with experience in the type of agents you plan on building. These agencies often help many companies like yours, and can offer guidance on more than just technical implementation.

How to Evaluate and Trust an AI Agent Developer

1. Review Their Past Work

Examine their portfolio or GitHub repositories to assess the quality and relevance of their projects. Look for:

  • Successful deployments of AI agents.
  • Evidence of using recent frameworks like LangChain or AutoGPT.
  • Projects demonstrating creativity and problem-solving in real-world applications.

2. Ask for References

Speak to past clients or employers about their experience working with the developer. Key questions include:

  • How well did they deliver on project goals?
  • Were they communicative and collaborative?
  • Did they build with the latest AI tools and frameworks?

3. Start With a Trial Contract

The #1 way to increase likelihood of a successful freelance hire is to do a trial contract. This sets a positive incentive: do good on a small piece of work, and you will earn more in a bigger contract later.

You can do trial engagements such as:

  • Solve a small problem relevant to your project.
  • Complete a small piece of your overall project.
  • Create a detailed technical specification for your application.

We recommend always doing paid trial contracts: the best freelancers will never accept unpaid work. If someone is accepting unpaid work, it's usually a sign that they are desperate for clients (bad signal).

4. Look for Community Involvement

Developers who are active in AI communities often have their fingers on the pulse of the latest advancements. Contributions to open-source projects or regular engagement in forums signal both expertise and a commitment to the field.

You can determine a developers level of involvement in these communities by asking for their Github Account. A developer with an active Github history (a lot of "green boxes") means they are contributing to public code that other developers value. Generally, the more green on their profile, the better!

Telegram Ban Message

Why Hire an AI Agent Developer Agency?

While hiring an individual developer can work for small proof-of-concept projects, but for client-facing or advanced projects, partnering with an agency like Recursive Studio can offer better outcomes for businesses.

1. Depth of Expertise

Agencies like Recursive aggregate top-tier engineers under one roof: ensuring your project benefits from a range of perspectives and skills, from architecture to deployment.

2. Cutting-Edge Knowledge

Our team is deeply embedded in AI agent developer communities and stay ahead of emerging trends and frameworks. Whether it’s Eliza Framework, o1, or the latest in reinforcement learning, our team is always up-to-date.

3. Reliability and Scalability

An agency’s resources and established workflows mean you can trust us to deliver on time and scale your project as needed. Unlike freelancers, agencies like Recursive equipped to handle unexpected challenges without compromising quality.


Final Thoughts

Hiring an AI agent developer requires more than just technical evaluation—it’s about finding someone who understands your vision and has the expertise to bring it to life.

By focusing on referrals, evaluating past work, and considering experienced agencies like Recursive Studios, you’ll set your project up for success.

If you’re ready to build a powerful AI agent, get in touch with our team.

With deep roots in AI agent development, we’re here to help entrepreneurs like you transform ideas into reality.

Kirsten Pomales

Kirsten Pomales

Partner at Recursive. Developer and opensource advocate.

let's build together

Schedule a call to discover how we can achieve your team's big vision, together.

SaaS Dashboard