Veritone to acquire AI-based HR firm PandoLogic in a $150 million dealVeritone to acquire AI-based HR firm PandoLogic in a $150 million deal

Veritone said it expects the deal to be “immediately accretive” 

AI software developer Veritone is buying New York-based talent acquisition startup PandoLogic (formerly RealMatch) in a deal worth around $150 million – including $50m in cash and $35m in Veritone stock.

The remaining 43%, or $65 million in cash and stock, is payable based on earnouts tied to financial performance in fiscal 2021 and 2022.

“This transformative acquisition builds on the strength of our organic growth, expands our addressable market with a new diversified revenue stream, and unlocks new growth and development opportunities as we integrate the platforms,” Chad Steelberg, Veritone’s chair and CEO, said.

The transaction is subject to customary checks, with the deal expected to close late in the third quarter of 2021.

New horizons

PandoLogic was founded in 2007. Its flagship product, pandoIQ, is an AI-enabled talent acquisition platform that automates and optimizes job ad placements to help companies meet hiring needs while minimizing recruitment ad spend.

Veritone said the deal represents a market expansion into HR and talent acquisition, and that it expects the deal to be “immediately accretive” – with PandoLogic generating more than $50m in SaaS revenue alone.

“With our shared vision for AI and strong cultural alignment, we are looking forward to becoming a part of the Veritone family,” said Terrance Baker, CEO of PandoLogic.

Synthetic voices

In May, Veritone launched MARVEL.ai, a platform that enables businesses to create, manage, license, and monetize synthetic speech – including “hyper-realistic” celebrity voices – through AI. This concept was the subject of a recent AI Business podcast episode, where the team used Uberduck.ai – a free-to-use synthetic voice tool, to make Sir Patrick Stewart appear on the show.

MARVEL.ai customers can request a particular voice model for auto-generated content, or attempt to create their own.