Speak_

Speak_ is a recruiting software company offering an AI platform that reviews job applicants' resumes against evaluation criteria defined by the hiring team. Recruiters describe the skills, experiences and qualities they want and assign relative importance to each; the platform, which the company calls an AI Signal Generator, scores every applicant, ranks the strongest fits at the top of the list and returns per-candidate insights explaining matches and mismatches. Additional features include bulk candidate management (advancing or archiving candidates in one action), customizable evaluation weights and applicant management tools.

The product connects bi-directionally to applicant tracking systems including Ashby, Lever, Greenhouse and Workable, with further integrations stated as in progress; it can also be used without an ATS by creating a job, setting signals and uploading resumes directly. The company frames the product around three recruiter problems: limited review time, susceptibility to unconscious bias in manual resume review, and low qualified-candidate density in large applicant pools. Press coverage describes the approach as sentiment-based analysis that lets recruiters train the system in their own words, citing an example instruction to find candidates with "strong systems thinking and analytical skills."

Earlier versions of the company's site describe a different set of activities under the same brand: cohort-based, fully managed talent training and interview-preparation programs for employers, employer-branding video content, and a community of software engineers, with a program aimed at connecting startups to entry-level, underrepresented engineering candidates.

Founding story

Company material lists Andrea Guendelman as co-founder and CEO and Anthony Rotoli as co-founder and head of product, with early positioning centered on helping candidates prepare for interviews through tailored company insights, community support and interview kits, under the premise that talent is distributed more evenly than opportunity.

Business model

Software-as-a-service sold to employers and recruiting teams on subscription tiers priced by monthly resume-scoring volume. A free tier covers up to 250 resumes with ATS integration, insights and email support; a Pro tier at $199 per month covers up to 10,000 resumes per month and adds bulk candidate management, customizable evaluation weights, white-glove onboarding and a dedicated Slack channel; an Enterprise tier is custom-priced with unlimited resumes and users, extended ATS support, a dedicated account manager and custom integrations. The company also runs an affiliate program paying commission on referred customers. Earlier site material describes a one-time $1,000 fee for a one-month startup program including an interview event and two batches of candidate leads.

Recurring monthly subscriptions tiered by resume-scoring volume ($0 free tier, $199/month Pro, custom Enterprise pricing), plus affiliate referral commissions.

Traction

The website cites customer deployments handling high applicant volumes, including an employer that received over 3,000 applicants for a single role. Earlier site material references a community of more than 30,000 software engineers and recruiting alongside companies such as Amazon, GoDaddy and Robinhood. Speak_ was one of 11 startups in the Techstars Workforce Development accelerator cohort that presented at demo day in Denver on June 5, 2025.

Latest developments

Speak_ pitched at the Techstars Workforce Development Demo Day held at The Cable Center in Denver on June 5, 2025, as part of a cohort of 11 startups, and was highlighted in coverage of the event for its recruiter-trained, sentiment-based candidate evaluation approach.