The job interview hasn't changed much over the past four decades, despite recent technological advances. The traditional recruitment process is plagued by unconscious bias that affects job seekers more than most people think. One startup is on a mission to help employers remove biases and hire smarter, faster, and more experienced employees.
Sapia.ai is a Melbourne, Australia tech startup that has developed an AI-powered inclusive and intelligent talent solution that is based on science and built for humans. Unlike traditional job interviews, job candidates answer five questions in their own time, mobile or desktop, and Sapia s Ai Smart Interviewer gives HR and hiring managers instant recommendations so they can find top talent. Sapia's tool currently provides a 75 percent completion rate and candidate satisfaction at over 90 percent.
Today, Sapia.ai raised $17 million in Series A funding to continue the success of its AI solution in delivering diversity and inclusion in hiring. The round was led by Macquarie Capital and Woolworths Group's W 23 venture capital arm.
Sapia's technology is the first to disrupt biases that affect traditional recruitment processes and deliver fair results for candidates and companies, founded by co-founder and former HR executive Barb Hyman. Since its inception two years ago, the startup has grown 200% YOY.
Sapia's AI-powered automation platform is centered around a blind, untimed and asynchronous chat interview that will change the speed and quality of hiring while removing bias from the hiring process.
Hyman said that the mission of Sapia is to make equity a reality. She added that our customers are seeing extraordinary results and seeing them fast. Dan Phillips, co-founder of Macquarie Capital's Venture Capital business, said that his team was impressed and excited by the technology solution that Sapai.ai has created, and how it is using AI to solve diversity and inclusion.
We have been talking about diversity for a long time, but many companies are not equipped to bring about real change. Phillips said that this is due to the fact that we don't acknowledge our human biases.
Sapia s Smart Chat interviewer has redefined what a fair recruitment process can be. It is blind, it is efficient, and it is backed by valid peer-reviewed science. Woolworths Group has been using Sapia.ai for 12 months and is providing funding through its investment arm, W 23. Ingrid Maes, W 23, Managing Director of W 23, said the program had helped reshape the Group's hiring process and improve the experience of candidates applying for positions.
Hundreds of thousands of applications are processed annually in our supermarket business because of the constant recruitment of Woolworths Group. Ms. Maes said that this new technology positively affects bias during the recruitment process.
We are really pleased with the experience our applicants have in the process of delivering the hiring and equality outcomes that we strive for across the Group, not only because it provides a flexible platform for our recruitment teams.
The investment comes at a time of huge growth with customer numbers more than double over the last year, according to the Australian-founded company. The raise will help with continued overseas expansion, including making the product available in multiple languages.