(Bloomberg) -- Artificial intelligence-powered hiring startup Mercor has notched a valuation of $2 billion in a new funding round — a massive markup for the small San Francisco-based team and the latest sign of continuing AI exuberance.
The startup, which investors valued at $250 million in September, raised $100 million in the deal, which was led by Felicis, with participation from General Catalyst, DST Global, Benchmark and Menlo Ventures. Previous investors include Peter Thiel, Jack Dorsey and Larry Summers.
Unlike many AI startups, Mercor is currently profitable, the company said. The startup expects to generate $1 million in profit and $7 million in revenue this month, Chief Executive Officer Brendan Foody told Bloomberg. Foody, 21, won a Thiel Fellowship last year — the Peter Thiel-backed program that provides grants to young entrepreneurs, provided they drop out of school.
At Mercor, “Revenue is expanding faster than we can grow the team,” Foody said, adding that he expects to expand the company’s headcount to 100 from 75 by the end of the year.
Founded in 2023, Mercor joins Rippling, HireVue Inc., ZipRecruiter Inc. and others in a crowded field of companies seeking to use AI to overhaul the hiring process. AI startups have raised money swiftly and at record levels — US startups raised nearly $100 billion last year alone — as venture capitalists jockey for early positions in a technology they expect will transform industries.
Foody says the networking opportunities and imprimatur from the Thiel Fellowship helped him and his co-founders build the company more quickly.
Foody said he didn’t go out to raise funds for the latest round. Rather, investors sought him out and agreed to Mercor’s terms quickly, with the funding round coming together in just two weeks.
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