Gigged.AI, an online recruitment platform that uses innovative artificial intelligence to bring freelance talent and forward-thinking clients together, has raised £1.6 million (USD $2.0 million) in a seed round led by Par Equity, alongside existing investor Techstart Ventures, Edinburgh strategic design firm Nile HQ. The funding round also witnessed participation from John Brodie, Nick Jones, Stewart Siegal, Grant Fraser, Mark Robinson and Warwick Beresford-Jones.
With this investment, the company plans to grow its team, remotely in addition to its Glasgow and London hubs. It also has a number of partnerships and contract wins in the pipeline this year.
Co-founded by Rich Wilson and Craig Short in 2021, Gigged.AI deploys AI-matching algorithms to help businesses source and onboard on-demand tech talent, while enabling SMEs and larger corporations to retain existing staff. Its software matches people equipped with relevant technology skills to suitable hiring companies. The platform also provides an overview of a business’s current talent capabilities to prevent unnecessary hires where possible.
Speaking about the company, Co-founder & CEO of Gigged.AI, Rich Wilson, said:
The ‘Great Resignation’ has seen millions of people quit their jobs every month, as they leave to seek more flexibility and better opportunity. When you look at Gen Z, almost two out of three now engage in freelance work, and within our own talent community on the platform we are seeing around 70 per cent of people with second jobs.
Wilson further added:
The companies in our client base are experiencing these trends first-hand and now have much better visibility for what skills they have in-house, and where they need to add talent, or upskill it. We have a best-of-class product, which is pioneering as we have both an open and internal talent marketplace, the first time the companies we are working with have had access to this kind of dual platform.
Gigged.AI is on a mission to accelerate the future of work. Its AI chatbot helps create an accurate work assignment for the project. Headquartered in Glasgow, the startup has partnered with some of the UK’s most innovative companies and agencies to create a platform fit for the future. Its clients include the BBC, ATOS, Webhelp, Skyscanner, FanDuel, and the University of Edinburgh.
Par Equity, Founding Partner & Investor with Par Equity, who is also a recruitment sector veteran who has overseen multiple exits in the sector, added:
HRTech is a fast-growing segment, and what Rich, Craig and the team have built in terms of the technology to support sourcing, onboarding, and helping to retain staff, in such a short amount of time is a remarkable achievement. We look forward to supporting the company on its journey to becoming one of the leading players in the sector.
