The fast-growing artificial intelligence company is redefining tech hiring and data-labeling after a rival’s sudden collapse

Artificial intelligence startup Mercor has become one of the fastest-rising names in tech, reaching a $10 billion valuation following a new $350 million Series C funding round.

The raise, announced Monday, was led by Felicis, with participation from Benchmark, General Catalyst, and new investor Robinhood Ventures. The round marks a fivefold jump in valuation since February—proof that investors see huge potential in Mercor’s mission to reshape how AI systems are trained and how human expertise fuels artificial intelligence.

From Hiring Platform to AI Powerhouse

Founded by three Thiel Fellows, Mercor began as a recruiting startup using AI to analyze interviews, résumés, and portfolios to identify top talent. But along the way, the company built a massive network of skilled professionals—and that network became its biggest strength.

When Meta’s $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI led to the exit of Scale’s founder and raised questions about neutrality in the data-labeling industry, Mercor seized the moment.

“It just doesn’t happen too often in startups where your biggest competitor gets torpedoed overnight,” cofounder Adarsh Hiremath told Forbes.

That opportunity helped Mercor pivot from being a hiring tool to becoming a global AI training platform, connecting human experts with machine learning models in need of high-quality data.

AI Meets Human Expertise

Today, Mercor manages more than 30,000 contractors who collectively earn over $1.5 million daily, the company said in a blog post. These specialists “teach agents to think more like humans by sharing knowledge, experience, and context that can’t be captured in code alone.”

This human-in-the-loop approach—where people directly train and refine AI systems—has become central to the startup’s identity. It bridges the gap between human intelligence and machine learning, producing smarter, more nuanced AI behavior.

The new $350 million investment will accelerate this effort across three areas:

  • Expanding Mercor’s expert network
  • Advancing its AI-matching technology for training opportunities
  • Delivering faster, higher-quality results to enterprise partners

A Rapidly Evolving AI Market

Mercor’s rise comes at a turbulent time for the AI data-labeling industry. With Scale AI’s Meta deal shaking market confidence, many major AI labs—including Google and OpenAI—reportedly distanced themselves from Scale.

That vacuum has given startups like Mercor, Surge AI, Turing AI, and Invisible Technologies room to grow. Surge AI is reportedly raising up to $1 billion, while Turing AI reached a $2.2 billion valuation earlier this year, and Invisible Technologies hit $2 billion in September.

But Mercor now stands apart—not just as another contractor marketplace, but as a tech-driven AI startup with its own data science infrastructure and advanced matching algorithms.

The Future of AI Training

With deep-pocketed investors and an expanding global workforce, Mercor is positioning itself at the center of AI’s next growth wave. By connecting real human expertise to machine learning at scale, the company could redefine how the world’s most advanced systems learn, adapt, and improve.

As the demand for smarter, more ethical, and more reliable AI continues to surge, Mercor’s blend of human insight and artificial intelligence might just be the edge the industry needs.

The Takeaway

In a moment when rivals are faltering, Mercor’s $10 billion leap shows that agility, timing, and innovation still define success in tech.

The startup’s story is a reminder that in the race to build better AI, humans are still the ultimate teachers.