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§ Private Profile · Sunnyvale, CA, USA
AI-powered recruitment technology for talent acquisition, helping recruiters identify and match passive candidates using machine learning
Based in Sunnyvale, California, Connectifier developed AI-powered recruitment technology that utilized machine learning to help hiring managers identify and match passive job candidates. The company's software platform aggregated a searchable index of over 400 million online profiles to facilitate talent acquisition for tens of thousands of recruiters across multiple sectors, including aerospace, finance, and technology. Prior to its acquisition, the enterprise operated with approximately 50 employees and achieved a 487% revenue growth rate between the first quarters of 2014 and 2015. The startup raised $6 million in venture funding from institutional investors including True Ventures, Goldcrest Capital, and Okapi Venture Capital before being acquired by LinkedIn for approximately $150 million in February 2016. Operating on a freemium subscription model, Connectifier was founded in 2011 by former Google engineers John Jersin and Benjamin McCann.
Connectifier has raised $12.0M across 3 funding rounds.
Connectifier has raised $12.0M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Connectifier has raised $12.0M across 3 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $6.0M Series B in October 2015.
Connectifier is an AI-powered recruitment platform that aggregates data from across the web to create comprehensive candidate profiles, enabling recruiters to discover passive talent beyond traditional job boards.[1][2][3] Founded by former Google engineers John Jersin and Ben McCann, it solves key industry pain points like outdated or incomplete profiles by using machine learning, big data analytics, and natural language processing to build accurate profiles with verified contact info, serving tens of thousands of recruiters in tech, finance, sales, and healthcare.[1][2][3] The company achieved explosive early growth, with revenues surging 487% from Q1 2014 to Q1 2015, became cash-flow positive, and raised $6M in funding before LinkedIn acquired it in 2016, integrating its technology into LinkedIn Recruiter.[1][2][3]
Connectifier emerged from the frustration of two ex-Google engineers, John Jersin and Ben McCann—a real-time analytics specialist—who identified a lack of innovation in recruitment after years without meaningful advancements in sourcing passive candidates.[2] Jersin, spotting the gap in tools that proactively hunt talent across the public internet rather than relying on active job seekers' CVs, teamed up with McCann in 2014 to build an AI-driven platform.[1][2] Early traction was rapid: operating quietly, it quickly onboarded tens of thousands of recruiters, hit 487% revenue growth year-over-year by mid-2015, secured $6M from True Ventures and others, and publicly launched amid hype for its data-harnessing approach, culminating in LinkedIn's 2016 acquisition.[1][2][3]
Connectifier rode the early 2010s AI and big data wave in HR tech, timing perfectly with recruiters' need for tools to tap passive talent amid talent shortages in high-demand sectors like tech and finance.[1][2] Market forces like exploding online data volumes and the shift from reactive to proactive sourcing favored its model, filling "black holes" in traditional platforms and influencing the ecosystem by proving AI could revolutionize headhunting.[2][3] Post-acquisition, its tech powered LinkedIn Recruiter's expansion, accelerating industry adoption of web-crawling AI for talent pipelines and setting standards for comprehensive sourcing that competitors like RecruitBPM now reference.[3]
Connectifier's legacy endures through LinkedIn Recruiter, where its AI continues scaling to handle massive talent discovery amid AI's deepening HR integration. Next steps likely involve enhanced predictive matching and multimodal data (e.g., video portfolios) as genAI trends evolve sourcing. Its influence grows by democratizing access to elite passive talent, shaping a more efficient global recruitment ecosystem—transforming a "small problem" into an enduring industry game-changer, as early investors noted.[2]
Connectifier has raised $12.0M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Connectifier's investors include Acequia Capital, Alt Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Bonfire Ventures, Cota Capital, Factorial, Lazerow Ventures, Moonshots Capital, Polaris Partners, Practical Venture Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Seven Seven Six.