AI workforce platform Firstwork has raised $15 million in Series A financing led by Earlybird Venture Capital, bringing its total funding to $20 million.
Legion VC and Deel Ventures participated, alongside existing investors Gradient and Y Combinator.
Founded in 2024 by Vardhan Kapoor and Shubham Choudhary, Firstwork builds AI agents that automate administrative processes for employers with large frontline workforces.
Kapoor previously led operations and strategy at Deliveroo Singapore and worked at Remitly, while Choudhary held engineering roles at Rippling and Deel, where he worked on global employment infrastructure.
The company focuses on a segment of the labor market often underserved by enterprise software: workers in logistics, hospitality, healthcare, retail, staffing and other industries where employees perform work outside traditional offices.
These businesses often recruit large numbers of employees while dealing with frequent turnover, changing schedules and complex compliance requirements.
A particularly costly problem occurs between a candidate accepting a job offer and completing their first shift.
Employers must verify documents, complete background checks, collect employment information, coordinate training and ensure workers meet the relevant legal requirements.
These processes typically involve several software systems and considerable manual coordination.
Firstwork uses AI agents to manage those workflows across existing HR, payroll and screening platforms.
Its software can contact workers, request missing documentation, coordinate verification steps, update systems and help resolve administrative issues.
Rather than replacing the underlying systems of record, the company positions its product as an operational automation layer that performs work across them.
Firstwork says more than 150,000 frontline workers now begin employment through its platform each month.
Customers include Deel, Job&Talent, Relay, Wonolo and BGSF.
According to the company, customers have reduced the time spent on certain onboarding processes by as much as 90%. Earlybird also reports that Firstwork has secured seven-figure enterprise contracts, although the company has not disclosed its total recurring revenue.
One of its distinguishing characteristics is the focus on direct operational costs.
Traditional HR software primarily charges for managing employee data and workflows. Firstwork is attempting to replace parts of the manual work performed by HR teams, staffing coordinators and outsourced service providers.
That positions it against labor-intensive administrative spending, not just existing software budgets.
The company is now expanding beyond initial onboarding into recurring employee management, including credential renewals, compliance monitoring, workforce support and continuing training.
The new funding will support AI research, engineering, go-to-market hiring and expansion across the United States and Europe.
The market opportunity is substantial because frontline workers represent a large share of global employment, yet many enterprise AI products are designed primarily for office-based professionals.
Firstwork is betting that applied AI can generate measurable savings in labor-intensive operational environments.
Its main challenge is reliability.
Employment processes involve sensitive personal information, legal compliance and decisions that affect people's ability to work. Errors in identity checks, employment authorization or required certifications can create significant consequences for both workers and employers.
The company will need to demonstrate that its agents can manage exceptions accurately, maintain audit trails and scale across different jurisdictions without extensive manual intervention.
The longer-term question is whether Firstwork can become a broader operating layer for frontline employment, or whether its strongest economics will remain concentrated in onboarding and compliance automation.