Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has invested in UK-based startup Dex, which is on a mission to redefine the way companies find and retain top talent using artificial intelligence. Dex has raised $3.1 million in a pre-seed funding round led by a16z's Speedrun fund and Concept Ventures, with participation from several angel investors.

The London-based startup, founded by CTO Harry Uglow and CEO Paddy Lambros, aims to create a comprehensive platform that leverages AI to match companies with the best candidates. Dex's platform uses AI-powered recruitment smarts, including matchmaking and coaching, to improve retention rates in the long run. The startup has already signed up over two dozen UK tech firms, including two high-profile unicorns, and is currently in closed beta.

Dex's platform takes a unique approach to recruitment by conversing with candidates via a call to understand their experience, skills, ambitions, and more. The AI-powered platform then helps candidates plan their next career move, presents them with relevant opportunities, prepares them for interviews, and even negotiates job offers. Dex works with both passive and active job seekers, keeping tabs on open positions advertised on the web and serving alerts when suitable opportunities arise.

The startup's founders, who previously worked at European VC firm Atomico, believe that Dex can fill a gap in the recruitment market by providing an all-encompassing platform that truly understands candidates. "We believe candidates don't want to trawl through hundreds of generic job advertisements, so Dex does the searching for you, saving you hours of scrolling, researching, and then admin applying," said Lambros.

Dex's platform is built on multiple large language model (LLM) providers, including OpenAI, Google, and Meta, allowing it to switch between providers to benefit from the latest advancements. The startup has also spoken to over 50 experienced recruitment leaders to learn about their recruitment methodology and what they look for in ideal candidates.

On the company side, Dex converses with recruitment teams to establish their preferences for their ideal candidate, combining this information with publicly available data to power its recommendation systems. With the new funding, Dex plans to ramp up its hiring across engineering and marketing, with a view toward launching publicly in the UK before expanding to international markets.

The investment in Dex marks a significant bet on the future of AI-powered recruitment, which is becoming increasingly important in the competitive job market. As companies struggle to find and retain top talent, Dex's platform could provide a much-needed solution. "Hiring isn't about filling seats — it's about creating lasting partnerships that benefit employees and companies," said Lambros.

With its innovative approach to recruitment and its focus on improving retention rates, Dex is poised to make a significant impact in the industry. As the startup continues to fine-tune its platform and expand its reach, it will be interesting to see how it shapes the future of recruitment and talent management.