Headstart raises $7 million for AI that tackles recruitment bias

Headstart, a platform that leverages data science to help companies reduce unconscious bias in the hiring process, has raised $7 million in a seed round of funding led by AI-focused Silicon Valley VC firm FoundersX, with participation from Founders Factory. Founded out of London in 2017, Headstart is one of a growing number of startups that promise to help companies increase their diversity during recruitment drives. This is achieved through combining machine learning with myriad data sources to find the best candidates based on specific objective criteria. "The machine -- the algorithms and models -- does this without emotion, fatigue, or overt subjective, conscious or subconscious opinion or feeling," Headstart cofounder and chairman Nicholas Sherekdemain told VentureBeat. This internal data is reviewed for built-in bias, so if there is a clear leaning toward a specific demographic this can be addressed in subsequent hiring campaigns.