Fountain
YC S15San Francisco, US · Founded 2015 · 200 employees · 22 known investors
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Fountain provides an applicant tracking system designed specifically for hiring hourly workers at scale. The platform helps recruiters manage hiring processes from application to first day of work across 75+ countries.
Also known as OnboardIQ · Fountain Inc.
Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (S15)
Fountain was founded in 2015 by Keith Ryu.
Investors · 22
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Funding
SEC filings, press & company announcements- Undisclosed amountSeries CJun 2022Source ↗
Source: company announcements and press reports — follow each round's link for the claim.
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Fountain provides software for recruiting, onboarding and managing frontline and hourly workforces. Its platform, presented as a "Frontline OS", bundles an applicant tracking system (applications, screening, knockout questions, interview scheduling, offer letters), a candidate CRM for talent communities and re-engagement, sourcing across job boards and talent pools, onboarding (document collection, e-signature, I-9 and W-4 forms, background checks) and shift and scheduling tools including shift creation, auto-assignment, worker notifications and coverage-gap management.
The company positions an agent layer, branded Cue, that orchestrates the product suite and runs hiring, onboarding and support workflows end to end. Fountain states the agents are built on Anthropic model infrastructure and describes enterprise governance features including SOC 2 compliance, role-based access, zero-trust architecture, isolated environments, automatic logging of agent decisions and configurable execution permissions, budget thresholds and approval triggers. The platform connects to more than 40 systems across HR, scheduling, compliance, training and background checks.
Traction
Fountain states it is used by more than 500 frontline employers. Customer-reported outcomes published by the company include an 80% reduction in time-to-hire at LSG Sky Chefs, 30% at Alto, 58% at Stitch Fix and 95% at Fetch, a 48% increase in offer acceptance rate at CLEAR, and 230 recruiting hours saved.
Latest developments
Fountain announced the launch of three new products aimed at frontline hiring and employee engagement, and promotes Cue, an agent layer that orchestrates its ATS, CRM, sourcing, onboarding and scheduling modules. It also reports being recognized in the 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Talent Acquisition (Recruiting) Suites.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market
Market position
Fountain positions itself as a hiring and frontline-operations platform for high-volume hourly employers and cites recognition in the 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Talent Acquisition (Recruiting) Suites.
Technology
The product suite is orchestrated by an AI agent product called Cue, which executes hiring, onboarding and support workflows and is built on Anthropic model infrastructure. Fountain describes integrations with 40+ HR, scheduling, compliance, training and background-check systems, plus a security and governance layer covering SOC 2 compliance, role-based access, zero-trust architecture, isolated environments, decision logging and human-set execution permissions, budget thresholds and approval triggers.
Go-to-market
Fountain sells directly to enterprise frontline employers, using demo requests and self-serve product trials on its website, published customer case studies by vertical, and analyst recognition such as inclusion in the 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Talent Acquisition (Recruiting) Suites.
Fountain targets employers of frontline and hourly workers, with vertical positioning for quick-service restaurants and food service, retail, delivery and logistics, and outsourced services such as cleaning, security, event staffing and technician work. Named customers include Bojangles, LSG Sky Chefs, Alto, CLEAR, Stitch Fix and Fetch, and the company says it is used by more than 500 frontline employers.
Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Images
Founder mafia
2 people who came through Fountain went on to found or lead other companies.
Competitors · 1
by search overlap
Companies competing with Fountain for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Timeline · 2
launches, deals, and filingsFountain states it was recognized in the 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Talent Acquisition (Recruiting) Suites.
Fountain announced three new products intended to streamline frontline hiring and boost employee engagement.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 1
primary sources listed
- Fountainfountain.com · web
1 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Fountain do?
- Fountain is a frontline hiring platform combining ATS, CRM, sourcing, onboarding and scheduling with AI agents.
- Who founded Fountain?
- Fountain was founded by Keith Ryu in 2015.
- Who are Fountain's investors?
- Fountain's investors include B Capital Group, B4 Capital, Bling Capital, Charlotte Street Capital, Commerce Ventures, Crosslink Capital, DCM Ventures, Flucas Ventures and 14 more.
- Where is Fountain headquartered?
- Fountain is headquartered in San Francisco, US.