Greenhouse, the New York hiring software company, said on May 5, 2026 that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ezra AI Labs, a startup that runs job screening interviews through a voice AI interviewer. Neither company disclosed the price or other financial terms.
Greenhouse said at the time that it expected the deal to close within the quarter, subject to customary conditions. On May 27 it announced that the acquisition was complete. Ezra founder Ophir Samson, who had served as the company's chief executive and chief technology officer, joined Greenhouse as Head of Voice AI and will lead the work of bringing voice-led interviewing into the Greenhouse platform.
Ezra remains on sale as a standalone product for existing and new customers. Greenhouse said that includes companies that run their hiring on applicant tracking systems other than its own. Over the coming months it plans to connect Ezra with its own interviewing, talent matching and candidate experience features.
What Ezra built
Ezra conducts on-demand interviews with job applicants by voice. Before interviews start, the software works with recruiters and hiring teams to set the questions and the scoring rubric for each role. Every candidate for that role is then asked the same questions and scored against the same criteria.
After each conversation, recruiters receive a full transcript, structured scores and a written evaluation that explains how the score was reached. Greenhouse said this differs from screening tools that filter applicants by matching keywords in their resumes. Ezra also flags answers that appear to be generated by AI or read from a script.
The product plugs into existing applicant tracking systems to automate the first round of screening. Candidates can take the interview at a time that suits them, answer in their own words, ask questions about the role and the team, and opt out at any stage. Greenhouse said Ezra is currently available in the United States, with other regions planned.
“Hiring has needed a conversation at the front of the funnel for a long time.”
Why Greenhouse is buying
Greenhouse built its business on structured hiring, the practice of asking candidates consistent questions and grading them on agreed criteria. The company said the deal extends that approach to the first stage of the hiring funnel, where application volumes are highest and strong candidates are most likely to be missed.
The company pointed to the rise in applications as a reason for the deal. In its completion announcement it said applications per recruiter on its platform had risen 412% since 2023. Its May 5 release cited figures from its 2026 Candidate AI Interview Report: applications per company were up 129% since 2023, 74% of candidates used AI in their job search, and fewer than 7% of applicants got an interview.
The same report found that 63% of job seekers had faced an AI interview, but only one in five believed most employers used AI responsibly. Greenhouse chief product officer Meredith Johnson said Ezra lets the company bring the rigour of structured hiring to the front of the funnel.
The founder and the funding
Ezra AI Labs was founded in 2024 by Ophir Samson. It raised a seed round from Penny Jar Capital, LMNT and a16z Speedrun, the startup programme run by Andreessen Horowitz. The size of the round was not disclosed, and neither company reported Ezra's headcount.
Greenhouse chief executive and co-founder Daniel Chait said that having Samson lead voice AI at the company means it can move faster on what comes next. Samson said that with Greenhouse, Ezra can now be offered to any company that wants it, whether or not it uses Greenhouse.
Bias audits and data rules
Greenhouse said Ezra now operates under its AI principles. Its Talent Matching feature undergoes monthly independent bias audits by Warden AI across ten protected classes, and the results are published on a Greenhouse AI Assurance Dashboard. The company said Ezra is covered by the same audit programme.
Greenhouse holds ISO 27001, ISO 27701 and ISO 42001 certifications, the last of which is a standard for AI management. It said customer personal data is not used to train its own language models or third-party models. Customers can switch AI features on or off for their whole organisation, and candidates can ask for a manual review.
Greenhouse says more than 7,500 companies use its software, including HubSpot, Anthropic, Gong and the NFL.
