Women in Technology: HuLoop Automation’s Linda Gilbert

Throughout the month of March, Finopotamus will celebrate Women’s History Month by featuring intriguing profiles and unique stories impacting the credit union and fintech industry. In the latest installment in our “Women in Technology” series, we visited with HuLoop Automation’s Vice President of Product and Engineering, Linda Gilbert.

The Auburn, Calif.-based fintech is billed as delivering a unified work optimization and automation platform to streamline processes and boost productivity using artificial intelligence (AI)-powered intelligent agents.

By W.B. King

In 2003, while at a tech conference with roughly 15,000 attendees, Linda Gilbert was just one of roughly 50 women technologists. “It was common for people to assume I was attending in a marketing or administrative role rather than as a software developer,” she told Finopotamus.

A year earlier, while finishing an associate degree at the Electronics Institute in Kansas City, Mo. in occupational studies/computer programming, she began working in a division of Horizons Consulting, which, at the time, was a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner.

Linda Gilbert

“I participated in as many local technology events as possible to learn about the industry that I hoped to join someday,” she shared. “At a local Microsoft Office launch event, I met John Rucker, owner of Horizons Consulting and Kirk Devore, leader of the Mobile Innovations division, and soon after joined the team as a mobile solutions developer in the Blackberry era.”

What excited her most about programming was the opportunity to “solve complex problems that have real-world impact,” she noted. “Growing up, I was always drawn to science, math, and puzzles. Over time, I realized programming offered a similar sense of fulfillment, solving meaningful problems and improving how people work.”

Strategic Partners Defining Business Solutions

At the onset of her career, she said tech departments were siloed. To illustrate this point, she provided an example: “I remember touring a facility early in my career where a manager introduced me to an engineer responsible for maintaining their mainframe. The engineer briefly looked at me, said nothing, and walked away. The manager then said, ‘Sorry about that; he doesn’t really talk to people, but nobody else understands the system.’”

In those days, she added, technology teams were often viewed as highly specialized groups working behind the scenes. “Organizations hired technologists primarily for their technical expertise, but there was often a disconnect between technology teams and the business teams they supported,” Gilbert continued. “Today, that dynamic has changed dramatically. Technology leaders are now strategic partners who help define business direction, not just support it.”

Prior to joining HuLoop Automation in 2025, first as chief customer officer and more recently vice president of product and engineering, Gilbert held similar roles at PRIDE Industries and RFgen Software. “In my role at HuLoop, that shift is very real. My team works closely with customers, operations leaders, and executive stakeholders to ensure our platform is solving the right problems and delivering measurable outcomes.”

Human-in-the-Loop

Whereas she was once viewed as the proverbial needle in the women tech haystack, today Gilbert said there are many more women leading engineering teams and driving innovation across tech-forward companies. “At HuLoop, we are intentional about recruiting, mentoring, and developing women technologists because diverse perspectives are essential to building responsible and effective AI-driven platforms,” she told Finopotamus.

As far as mentors are concerned, Gilbert noted the role Michael Baalman, now President of Horizons Consulting, had on her career. “He taught me not only how to apply technology in real-world environments but also how to communicate complex technical concepts in ways business leaders could understand,” she continued. “I would also recognize Kirk Devore, my first manager at Mobile Innovations, and Greg Armstrong, who inspired me to remain endlessly curious.”

She credits her leadership approach today with the examples they set. At HuLoop, for instance, she actively helps team members to find “clarity and confidence” in their careers. And for the next generation of women technologists, she shared inspiring words.

“Stay curious and never stop learning. Technology evolves constantly. I encourage women entering the field to embrace problem-solving and trust their perspective. Some of the most impactful innovations come from those willing to ask questions others may not ask,” she continued. “At HuLoop, we believe the future of work is ‘Human-in-the-Loop,’ and I’m excited to help build the teams and platforms that will define how work gets done in financial services for the next decade.”

Augmenting People Rather Than Replacing Them

Supporting 67 employees, 46 of whom are tech-facing, HuLoop has more than 70 financial institution (FI) clients. “We are building AI-first technology, which helps shape the future of work in credit unions and community banks,” she shared. “In my role, I oversee the strategy and delivery of our AI-based work optimization platform, ensuring our technology addresses the operational realities our clients face today.”

AI, she added, is a top-of-mind tech trend, and one that has captured the interests of HuLoop’s team, as it lies at the convergence of automation and work orchestration. “We are focused on advancing this evolution through AI-assisted workflows, digital workers, and agentic operating models that support employees in real time,” she said. “What excites me most is how these technologies amplify human capability rather than replace it.”

As opposed to other FIs, credit unions, she noted, are in a unique position because they are community-based, mission-driven organizations focused on serving their members. “That mission aligns closely with HuLoop’s philosophy, which emphasizes augmenting people rather than replacing them.”

While partnering with like-minded fintechs is important for credit unions, she added that the relationship should be based on empowering the “full mix of technologies” credit unions rely on, including core platforms, legacy systems, fintech solutions, and emerging AI capabilities. “Many institutions operate in complex environments built over decades, and replacing those systems is rarely practical or necessary,” she told Finopotamus. “HuLoop serves as a bridge across that ecosystem, connecting established technologies with modern future-of-work practices.”