Hirebolt
Hirebolt is a London-based AI engineering capacity platform, acquired by Index.dev in March 2026, that connects companies building AI products with a verified global network of 40-region software, ML, and AI engineers via instant search and AI-augmented teams.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Hirebolt does
Hirebolt, founded in 2021 in London, is an AI engineering capacity platform that connects companies building AI products with a curated, verified global network of software, ML, data, and AI implementation engineers. The platform combines four integrated capabilities — a Verified Network (pre-vetted talent pool), Instant Search (filtering by role, stack, timezone, AI capability, and availability), AI-Augmented Teams (flexible engineering capacity for shipping complex AI products), and Expert Evaluation (deep technical review and AI-specific assessment). Operationally, the platform covers 40 regions and timezones and claims an average 48-hour time-to-first-shortlist from search initiation. The product is delivered through Index.dev's platform (CTAs route to index.dev/hire) following Hirebolt's March 27, 2026 acquisition by Index.dev, and operates under the "Hirebolt by Index.dev" brand.
Hirebolt's business model combines a self-serve PLG motion ("Start Searching") with enterprise sales engagement ("Talk to Us" / "Book a Call"), targeting both mid-market and enterprise buyers seeking flexible AI engineering execution capacity. Revenue is generated through talent matching and placement services (likely placement fees or subscription access to the verified network) and AI engineering capacity services (managed teams and expert evaluation). Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is quote-based. The company serves customers across industries, with disclosed logos including Poq (retail/e-commerce), Boundaryless (technology), and SpeQtral (quantum systems). Founded as part of Y Combinator's S21 batch with ~$1.5M in seed funding from Y Combinator, Entrepreneur First, 7percent Ventures, Notion, and Helium-3 Ventures, Hirebolt originally operated as a hospitality-focused matching engine before being repositioned into AI engineering talent matching and subsequently acquired by Index.dev in March 2026 as part of a roll-up strategy that also included the October 2025 acquisition of Codemotion.
Hirebolt firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Hirebolt
- Legal name
- Hirebolt
- Website
- https://hirebolt.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Hirebolt is a London-based AI engineering capacity platform, acquired by Index.dev in March 2026, that connects companies building AI products with a verified global network of 40-region software, ML, and AI engineers via instant search and AI-augmented teams.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Hirebolt industry classification
Industry- Product category
- AI Talent Marketplace
- NAICS
- Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Engineering Services (8711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Cloud, DevOps & Infrastructure Staffing (BPACADAD)
Keywords
Where Hirebolt is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Hirebolt business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Talent Matching and Placement: Platform connects companies with verified AI engineers, ML engineers, and AI teams. Revenue likely generated through placement fees or subscription access to the talent network.
- AI Engineering Capacity Services: Provides AI-augmented teams and expert evaluation services, enabling companies to add flexible engineering capacity for building and shipping complex AI products.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
Hirebolt product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Hirebolt is an AI engineering capacity platform that connects companies with a curated, verified global network of AI engineers, ML engineers, LLM developers, and AI teams. The platform enables instant search by role, stack, AI capability, timezone, and availability, allowing companies to shortlist, interview, and add flexible engineering capacity to build and ship complex AI products. It is delivered through Index.dev's platform and offers expert evaluation services for AI-specific technical assessment.
Product overview
Hirebolt is an AI engineering capacity platform (a single unified product) that provides companies with instant access to verified global engineering talent through four integrated capabilities: Verified Network (curated talent pool), Instant Search (search by AI capability/stack/availability), AI-Augmented Teams (flexible engineering capacity), and Expert Evaluation (technical assessment). The platform is accessible via Index.dev and enables companies to move from talent need to execution in three steps: search the network, shortlist and interview, and add execution capacity. The service covers 40 regions/timezones with an average 48-hour time to first shortlist.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Hirebolt Platform AI engineering capacity platform providing instant access to a curated global network of verified engineers, AI-augmented teams, and expert AI evaluators. Enables companies to search, shortlist, interview, and add execution capacity for AI product development. Delivered through Index.dev's platform.
- AI-Augmented Teams Service Managed service providing flexible engineering capacity through individual engineers or flexible teams to help companies build and ship complex AI products.
- Expert Evaluation Service Deep technical review and AI-specific assessment service providing quality assurance and expert evaluation when hiring AI engineering talent.
Quantifiable outcome
- 48 hours average time to first shortlist
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Hirebolt
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Hirebolt technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Feature4 records
Hirebolt partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Index.devflagshipIndex.dev acquired Hirebolt in March 2026 to build a comprehensive AI engineering capacity platform. The acquisition repositioned Hirebolt from a hospitality-focused matching engine into a specialized AI engineering talent access layer, integrating with Index.dev's global talent network offering verified global engineering talent, instant search, AI-augmented teams, and expert evaluation capabilities.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Hirebolt competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Toptal: Toptal is a curated freelance marketplace for top technology talent including software engineers, ML/AI engineers, and data scientists. It is a direct competitor to Hirebolt's verified, curated model for sourcing senior technical talent on demand.
- Andela: Andela is a global talent marketplace that connects companies with vetted software engineers and AI/ML specialists, particularly from emerging tech hubs. It directly competes with Hirebolt's model of providing timezone-aligned, pre-vetted engineering capacity for product teams.
- Turing: Turing is an AI-powered platform that matches companies with pre-vetted remote software engineers, with particular emphasis on AI/ML talent. Its AI-driven matching engine and global developer pool closely parallel Hirebolt's value proposition.
- Arc.dev: Arc (formerly Arc.dev) is a remote tech talent marketplace specializing in senior software engineers. It overlaps with Hirebolt in serving companies seeking vetted technical talent for product development.
- Lemon.io: Lemon.io is a curated marketplace connecting startups with vetted freelance developers. It is comparable to Hirebolt as a focused talent matching platform for technical roles, though it serves a broader stack beyond AI/ML.
- Gun.io: Gun.io is a vetted freelance marketplace for software engineers serving startups and enterprises. It shares Hirebolt's emphasis on pre-screening and curated technical talent pools.
Emerging players
- Braintrust: Braintrust is a decentralized talent network with a focus on technology and AI talent, using a token-incentivized model. It is an emerging peer to Hirebolt's curated AI engineering talent platform with overlapping buyer segments.
Broad incumbents
- Upwork: Upwork is the largest freelance marketplace with broad coverage of technical roles including AI/ML engineers. While not specialized in AI talent vetting like Hirebolt, it competes for the same category of buyer spend on technical capacity.
- Deel: Deel is a global workforce platform providing international hiring, payroll, and contractor management. It is a broad incumbent that increasingly overlaps with talent platforms like Hirebolt as it expands into technical talent marketplaces.
- Remote: Remote is a global employment platform handling payroll, benefits, and compliance for distributed teams. As a broad incumbent in the global workforce space, it competes indirectly with Hirebolt for customers seeking international engineering capacity.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Hirebolt social profiles
Digital presenceHirebolt financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Hirebolt leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Hirebolt funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Hirebolt M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Hirebolt
What does Hirebolt do?
Hirebolt is an AI engineering capacity platform that connects companies with a curated, verified global network of AI engineers, ML engineers, LLM developers, and AI teams. The platform enables instant search by role, stack, AI capability, timezone, and availability, allowing companies to shortlist, interview, and add flexible engineering capacity to build and ship complex AI products. It is delivered through Index.dev's platform and offers expert evaluation services for AI-specific technical assessment.
Is Hirebolt a public or private company?
Hirebolt is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Hirebolt founded?
Hirebolt was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Hirebolt based?
Hirebolt is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Hirebolt make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Talent Matching and Placement is the primary driver. The others are AI Engineering Capacity Services.
Who are Hirebolt's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Toptal, Andela, Turing, Arc.dev, Lemon.io and Gun.io. Braintrust is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Upwork, Deel and Remote.
Does Hirebolt have an API?
No public API is recorded for Hirebolt.
What industry is Hirebolt in?
Hirebolt's product category is AI Talent Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACADAD, Cloud, DevOps & Infrastructure Staffing. Its NAICS code is 561311 and its SIC code is 7361.