Scaling engineering teams at a 50-million user AI scaleup.
How we helped EverAI secure DevOps, software and AI leadership talent while improving hiring quality and pace.
I’ve had the pleasure of working with James and his team on some of our most critical hiring mandates, and they consistently raise the bar for what great recruitment partnership looks like.
Barbara Veloso
Founding Talent Partner
EverAI
EverAI builds AI companion products for a global consumer audience exceeding 50 million users.
Industry
Consumer AI, AI Companion Technology
Discipline(s)
DevOps, Software Engineering, AI Leadership
Company Size at Partnership
Fast-growth scale-up; exact headcount not provided
Growth Stage at Partnership
Rapid-growth AI scale-up
Brief
EverAI began working with us during a period of aggressive technical growth, as the business scaled its AI companion platform to meet an expanding global user base. User numbers were increasing by the millions, product demand was accelerating, and the engineering team needed the capacity to continue shipping features at pace, so hiring became critical.
The initial mandate focused on a DevOps Engineer, but the partnership quickly extended into software engineering and, later, an AI Tech Lead search. EverAI had already worked with agencies, but delivery was falling short of the quality and pace required, particularly across software engineering. The team needed a specialist recruitment partner who could understand their technical expectations, represent the company accurately, and consistently raise the standard of candidate submissions.
Challenges
EverAI’s hiring environment was highly specific. The company operates in the AI companion sector, which meant candidate motivation, values alignment and comfort with the product domain had to be assessed carefully from the outset.
The technical bar was also extremely high. EverAI needed engineers who could add immediate value in a fast-paced scale-up environment, while also fitting a culture built around speed, quality and ownership. Their interview process was thorough, and every candidate needed to be prepared properly to move through it successfully.
Approach
- Mapped target DevOps, software engineering and AI leadership talent across relevant high-growth AI and product-led technology companies.
- Built a three-stage outreach cadence designed to test motivation, product alignment and technical relevance before formal submission.
- Screened every candidate directly, assessing both engineering depth and cultural fit before introducing them to EverAI.
- Recorded candidate screenings and shared them with EverAI, removing the need for a separate internal recruiter-screening stage.
- Maintained a 24-hour feedback loop after CV submissions and interviews to sustain pace and protect candidate engagement.
- Provided practical advice and market insight throughout the process, helping EverAI secure the candidates they wanted.
- Worked closely with the Head of TA, creating a trusted partnership that expanded beyond the initial DevOps mandate.
EverAI builds AI companion products for a global consumer audience exceeding 50 million users.
Industry
Consumer AI, AI Companion Technology
Discipline(s)
DevOps, Software Engineering, AI Leadership
Company Size at Partnership
Fast-growth scale-up; exact headcount not provided
Growth Stage at Partnership
Rapid-growth AI scale-up
Brief
EverAI began working with us during a period of aggressive technical growth, as the business scaled its AI companion platform to meet an expanding global user base. User numbers were increasing by the millions, product demand was accelerating, and the engineering team needed the capacity to continue shipping features at pace, so hiring became critical.
The initial mandate focused on a DevOps Engineer, but the partnership quickly extended into software engineering and, later, an AI Tech Lead search. EverAI had already worked with agencies, but delivery was falling short of the quality and pace required, particularly across software engineering. The team needed a specialist recruitment partner who could understand their technical expectations, represent the company accurately, and consistently raise the standard of candidate submissions.
Challenges
EverAI’s hiring environment was highly specific. The company operates in the AI companion sector, which meant candidate motivation, values alignment and comfort with the product domain had to be assessed carefully from the outset.
The technical bar was also extremely high. EverAI needed engineers who could add immediate value in a fast-paced scale-up environment, while also fitting a culture built around speed, quality and ownership. Their interview process was thorough, and every candidate needed to be prepared properly to move through it successfully.
Approach
- Mapped target DevOps, software engineering and AI leadership talent across relevant high-growth AI and product-led technology companies.
- Built a three-stage outreach cadence designed to test motivation, product alignment and technical relevance before formal submission.
- Screened every candidate directly, assessing both engineering depth and cultural fit before introducing them to EverAI.
- Recorded candidate screenings and shared them with EverAI, removing the need for a separate internal recruiter-screening stage.
- Maintained a 24-hour feedback loop after CV submissions and interviews to sustain pace and protect candidate engagement.
- Provided practical advice and market insight throughout the process, helping EverAI secure the candidates they wanted.
- Worked closely with the Head of TA, creating a trusted partnership that expanded beyond the initial DevOps mandate.
Results and impact.
Secured three exceptional hires across DevOps, software engineering and AI leadership, strengthening core technical capability.
Removed a recruiter-screening stage by providing recorded assessments, improving process efficiency for EverAI’s internal TA team.
Raised candidate quality and culture alignment, supporting faster product delivery across a high-growth consumer AI platform.
Established a trusted ongoing partnership, extending from DevOps into software engineering and AI Tech Lead mandates.