Humanly

Humanly, based in Bellevue, WA, USA, develops an AI platform that empowers hiring teams to conduct more effective, equitable, and efficient high-volume recruiting by automating administrative tasks and enabling quality conversations with candidates without relying on traditional resumes or cover letters. Their technology emphasizes ethical AI to foster human connection at scale, aiming to address biases and inefficiencies inherent in conventional hiring processes. The venture-backed SaaS platform currently employs 30 individuals. Humanly has raised a total of $12 million in funding, including a $4.2 million seed round and a recent $12 million round in June 2023. They are a Y Combinator Winter 2020 batch alumnus, with Gustaf Alstromer noted as a primary partner. The company was founded in 2019 by Andrew Gardner, Prem Kumar, and Bryan Leptich.

High-Level Overview

Humanly is an AI-powered hiring platform designed to automate candidate sourcing, screening, scheduling, and engagement, significantly reducing the time recruiters spend on repetitive tasks and improving hiring efficiency. By integrating seamlessly with existing applicant tracking systems (ATS), Humanly helps corporate recruiters and talent acquisition teams, especially in high-volume hiring sectors like retail, healthcare, and hospitality, to fill roles faster and more inclusively. The platform leverages conversational AI across SMS, email, chat, voice, phone, and video to provide personalized candidate experiences and data-driven insights, achieving up to a 75% reduction in time-to-hire and improving candidate engagement and fairness[1][2][3].

Origin Story

Humanly was co-founded by Prem Kumar, who serves as CEO, with a vision to transform the hiring process by making it more equitable, efficient, and human-centered. The company emerged from the recognition that traditional hiring processes are inefficient and often exclude many qualified candidates, with recruiters typically engaging only about 5% of applicants. Humanly’s AI platform was developed to automate and scale candidate conversations, ensuring every applicant is considered. The company has evolved by integrating multiple AI-driven recruitment tools, including chat-based qualification, automated phone screenings, and AI-enabled video interviews, supported by extensive training data from both human-led and automated interviews[3][2].

Core Differentiators

• AI-Native Architecture: Humanly’s platform maintains conversational context across multiple channels (SMS, email, chat, voice), enabling seamless candidate engagement.
• Comprehensive Automation: Automates repetitive tasks such as candidate screening, scheduling, note-taking, and follow-ups, freeing recruiters to focus on strategic activities.
• Integration & Data Centralization: Bi-directional integrations with major ATS and HRIS platforms (e.g., Greenhouse, Workday, iCIMS, Lever) consolidate candidate data and communication into a unified system.
• Candidate Experience & Fairness: Uses conversational AI to analyze words, tone, and intent, promoting fairer hiring outcomes and reducing bias.
• Scalability for High-Volume Hiring: Particularly effective for industries with large applicant pools and high turnover, such as retail, healthcare, and hospitality.
• Talent CRM: Transforms static ATS databases into dynamic talent pools by rediscovering and re-engaging qualified past candidates[5][1][2].

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Humanly rides the wave of AI-driven automation and conversational AI in HR technology, addressing the growing demand for scalable, efficient, and equitable hiring solutions. The timing is critical as companies face talent shortages, high turnover, and the need to improve diversity and candidate experience. Market forces such as digital transformation in HR, the rise of remote work, and the increasing volume of applicants in certain sectors favor platforms like Humanly. By automating the top-of-funnel chaos and ensuring every candidate is engaged, Humanly influences the broader ecosystem by setting new standards for AI-powered recruitment fairness, speed, and candidate-centric communication[2][3][5].

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Humanly is poised to expand its influence by continuing to integrate and unify its AI capabilities, aiming to become the go-to platform for high-volume and enterprise-scale hiring. Future trends shaping its journey include advances in natural language understanding, ethical AI deployment, and deeper analytics for bias reduction and candidate experience optimization. As AI becomes more embedded in HR workflows, Humanly’s role will likely evolve from a tool for automation to a strategic partner in talent acquisition, driving both efficiency and inclusivity. Its strong venture backing and Y Combinator roots provide a solid foundation for scaling and innovation[2][5].