Former vice-president of Swiggy, Anuj Rath and ex-Chief Technology Officer at Zomato, Prashant Parashar, have soft-launched an Artificial Intelligence startup called Profound.
Profound, as a startup, uses personalised, voice-activated AI representatives to replace static resumes. Unlike other recruiting websites, it uses artificial intelligence to build an understanding of an individual's experience, working style, decision-making skills, aspirations and expertise.
For each individual, the AI representative will continuously identify relevant career opportunities and recommend valuable connections, with customisation as the Unique Selling Point (USP) of the service.
“That richer understanding of a professional enables significantly better matches, shifting professional discovery from keyword-based search to intelligence-driven matchmaking,” co-founder Prashant Parashar told media.
AI representatives can also be created by employers. Instead of making conventional job descriptions, this will allow them to describe roles directly through natural conversations. Organisational context will also become easier to convey, including details such as team culture and work style.
According to reports, it will enable artificial intelligence-powered matchmaking that will evaluate the compatibility between candidates and employers. In the long run, the company’s vision is to enable an ecosystem without human interference where AI representatives interact with one another.
Currently, the company is allowing users through an invite-only early-access programme. A broader launch is planned later this year.
As a first step, Profound will hire engineering and product development professionals. The startup plans to onboard around one million professionals over the next twelve months. It also aims to have an artificial intelligence team.
The company said it raised $1.5 million in a seed funding round. Participants included Swiggy co-founders Sriharsha Majety and Nandan Reddy, Zomato co-founder Pankaj Chaddah and Razorpay Chief Executive Officer Harshil Mathur. The global head for WhatsApp, Kunal Shah, and co-founder of OfBusiness were the other investors.
The investors believe that hiring is rapidly becoming AI-driven, and that a startup focused on introducing a layer between the professionals, recruiters, and employers can be profitable.
