Mercor, the AI-powered recruitment platform founded by Thiel Fellows Brendan Foody, Adarsh H., and Surya Midha—all just 21 years old—has raised $100 million in a Series B round led by Felicis, catapulting the startup’s valuation to $2 billion. This marks an eightfold surge from its previous valuation and solidifies Mercor as one of the fastest-growing startups in the talent-tech space.
The round saw continued support from marquee investors such as Benchmark, General Catalyst, DST Global, and Menlo Ventures.
Founded in 2023, Mercor leverages artificial intelligence to automate the recruitment lifecycle—from resume screening and candidate-job matching to AI-led interviews and payroll. Employers upload job descriptions, and Mercor’s system quickly surfaces top talent, aiming to streamline and de-bias hiring at scale.
For job seekers, the platform offers a 20-minute AI interview that evaluates skill sets and creates dynamic, role-agnostic profiles for full-time, part-time, or hourly placements. Clients already include high-profile firms such as OpenAI.
With fresh capital in hand, Mercor plans to double down on its mission to connect billions of individuals to meaningful careers and help companies unlock top-tier talent more efficiently and equitably. However, its bold claims around reducing hiring bias with AI continue to fuel ethical discussions in the HR tech ecosystem.
