This Chennai-based startup is matching startups with the right talent using AI

Startup firms often operate under high levels of uncertainty and resource constraints, which makes hiring a particularly challenging process. Founders struggle to attract the right talent, job portals often fail to deliver quality candidates, and traditional recruitment agencies charge hefty fees without guaranteeing results. The challenge isn’t just hiring—it’s hiring the right people, at the right time, in a cost-effective manner.

According to a recent study by NASSCOM, 70% of Indian startups cited talent acquisition and retention as their biggest growth challenge. 

To address these challenges, Deepak Subramanian, along with Shravan Kumar and Varun Gopalakrishnan started YourTribe in 2021 to help startups hire top talent by combining the power of AI with employer branding.

“We offer the expertise of a traditional agency but with the flexibility and affordability of a subscription model, making hiring efficient and scalable for growing startups,” says Subramanian.

Recently, YourTribe was featured on Startup Singam, where it secured Rs 4 crore in funding from all five investors on the panel—Magnifiq Capital Trust, Jain International Trade Organisation, Metis Family office, UAE Tamil Angels and Native Lead. 

Startup Singam is the first startup reality show in Tamil Nadu's mainstream TV focusing on startup and MSME investments and growth.

“This was a testament to the problem we are solving and the impact we are making in the hiring space,” claims Subramanian.

The founders’ journey

Subramanian has been an entrepreneur in the recruitment space since 2004. During the pandemic, he realized how challenging it was for a traditional brick-and-mortar recruitment agency to operate.

This prompted him to build a tech-enabled platform that could scale and adapt to the changing landscape.

“We decided to focus on startups, recognizing that each startup’s story needed to be told in a way that only its founder could. This led us to create an employer branding-driven recruitment marketplace—a platform designed to help startups attract top talent by showcasing their unique vision and culture,” he says.

“Since I didn’t have a technology background, I needed a strong technical co-founder. I reached out to my childhood friend Shravan, who was then working at Cognizant in the US and exploring opportunities in the startup space. With over 30 years of friendship and mutual trust, he immediately agreed to join me as CTO and Co-founder,” Subramanian adds.

While looking for a design head with experience in international branding and user experience, Subramanian met Varun, a Principal Designer at a US-based design company. 

“We instantly connected, and he aligned perfectly with our vision. Varun then joined us to shape the product’s design and branding,” he recalls.

Instead of charging high commission fees per hire, the Chennai-based startup introduced Recruitment-as-a-Service (RaaS) —a model where startups pay a fixed fee for access to high-quality hiring services.

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What it provides

YourTribe is a hiring marketplace designed specifically for startups, going beyond traditional job portals by curating top talent and matching candidates based on skills, career aspirations, and cultural fit.

“YourTribe doesn't just connect candidates with jobs—we help startups tell their story in a way that resonates. By turning opportunities into compelling career narratives, we’re transforming how startups attract and hire top talent,” adds the founder.

Further, its Recruitment-as-a-Service (RaaS) model offers startups an on-demand solution without the hefty per-hire commissions typically charged by recruitment agencies. 

“Instead of paying 8.33%–12% of annual salaries per hire, startups can opt for a cost-effective flat-fee model that provides flexibility and better hiring outcomes,” explains Subramanian.

So far the startup has successfully facilitated over 400 hires for startups, spread across more than 75 different companies. By eliminating hefty commissions and offering a scalable hiring solution, YourTribe claims to enable startups to save up to 50% while ensuring quality hires and a streamlined hiring process.

Business model and traction

YourTribe offers a range of hiring solutions tailored for startups. 

The Career Site helps companies enhance their employer branding with a dedicated page showcasing their culture and job opportunities, for Rs 12,000 per year. For those looking to streamline sourcing, the Career Site + Matching Leads package provides AI-matched CVs based on job descriptions, allowing startups to request batches of over 10 CVs across 5 job slots with an 80% JD match—priced at Rs 49,900 per year for 500 CVs. 

Meanwhile, the Career Site + Qualified Leads package offers not only sourcing but also expert screening and opportunity selling to candidates. This comes with replacement CVs for rejected interviews and is priced at Rs 12,000 for the career site, with an additional Rs 500 to Rs 15,000 per CV. 

For a fully managed hiring experience, the Career Site + Recruitment as a Subscription (RaaS) provides end-to-end recruitment support, from sourcing to onboarding, with a 90-day replacement window and an optional 1-year Attrition Shield. This service is designed for roles up to Rs 30 lakh per annum (with custom plans for higher CTC roles) and starts at Rs 4 lakh for five hiring credits as a welcome offer.

It also offers customized hiring plans for companies looking to fill multiple roles across different CTC ranges. Its pricing is based on the cumulative CTC of all planned hires. 

“For example, if a company intends to hire 20 employees with a total CTC of Rs 10 crores, we charge a base fee of Rs 50 lakhs, plus an Attrition Shield at Rs 25,000 per hire,” Subramanian explains. 

The startup competes with players like Wellfound, Hired, Themuse and Instahyre. 

Supporting women rejoining the workforce

YourTribe aims to create opportunities for professionals, especially women, looking to restart their careers after breaks, according to Subramanian.

“90% of our internal workforce comprises women who have successfully returned from a career break. Through our F5 Initiative, we actively help women on a career break connect with employers, ensuring they find meaningful opportunities in fast-growing startups,” says Subramanian.

“Our mission is to build an inclusive workforce where experience, talent, and passion matter more than career gaps. We take pride in enabling these professionals to re-enter the workforce with confidence and in empowering companies to tap into this exceptional talent pool,” he adds.

Market opportunities and way ahead

India’s white-collar job market began 2025 on a stable note, recording a 4% year-on-year rise in hiring. This growth was fueled by strong demand in traditional sectors such as FMCG (+16%), insurance (+15%), and pharma (+11%), as per Naukri’s JobSpeak Index for January 2025.

Speaking about future plans, Subramanian says, “As YourTribe scales, we are continuously innovating—enhancing AI-driven hiring, expanding our marketplace, and deepening employer branding solutions. Our mission is to become the default hiring platform for startups, empowering founders with a seamless, efficient, and affordable recruitment solution.”