The H-1B lottery, which randomly selects skilled foreigners to work in the U.S., is notoriously difficult to win. For the fiscal year 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received nearly half a million entries, with only about 120,000 moving to the “registration” phase and 85,000, or 18%, ultimately receiving a visa.
A California-based startup, Jobright.ai, aims to simplify job searching for foreign workers in the U.S. Eric Cheng, an immigrant and company co-founder, understands the struggles of foreign workers firsthand. This led to the creation of an “H1-B filter” in Jobright, based on USCIS data of companies that have historically sponsored H1-B visas. This feature became an instant hit among job seekers from India and China.
“This group has long been overlooked,” said Cheng, who previously worked as an early engineer at Box. Currently, around 30% of Jobright’s users are foreign workers. The H-1B filter has helped Jobright amass 50,000 registered users since its launch in April, without any marketing expenses.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Cheng conceived the idea of a job-seeking platform while traveling across China after selling his content collaboration SaaS company. He visited underdeveloped cities and helped young people struggling to find jobs by asking about their skillsets and suggesting career options.
“They were talented, but their understanding of the job market was limited. They didn’t know what jobs were available and what they could do,” Cheng said. “What if they all had a seasoned headhunter who could recommend jobs beyond their knowledge? The arrival of ChatGPT enabled me to build such a tool.”
Leveraging large language models, Jobright created an AI agent that acts as a headhunter tailored to individual job seekers. The AI interprets candidates’ experiences and recommends jobs they might not have otherwise considered. It scores positions based on their compatibility with the candidates, a feature used daily by 60% of Jobright’s users. It also helps users search for LinkedIn contacts likely to offer job referrals by identifying alumni or former co-workers.
Despite competing in the crowded AI-powered job search market, Jobright believes it has found a niche. While it shares some features—like using AI to write resumes and fill out applications—with established players such as YC-backed Simplify, its target users differ.
“Most of our users are mid- to senior-level professionals with at least a couple of years of work experience,” Cheng said. “Their challenge is not applying for more jobs, but finding personalized job search strategies and opportunities that align with their career stage and professional strengths.” Simplify, on the other hand, is popular among internship-seeking students and fresh graduates.
“Yes, there are LinkedIn and other job listing platforms, but users still need to spend a lot of time searching on their own. The information asymmetry is huge,” he added.
When asked if LinkedIn could develop similar AI features to replace Jobright, Cheng suggested that the giant is fundamentally a social network, whereas Jobright is designed to be “AI-native.”
“The cost for LinkedIn to fully embrace AI is high because it will have to topple its core ad-based business model, which is driven by clicks rather than accuracy. We aren’t just an AI wrapper. AI defines all aspects of our product, whether it’s data, recommendations, or user experience.”
Jobright previously raised $4.5 million led by Lanchi Venture, followed by UpHonest Ventures and Source Code Capital. The startup plans to expand its user base outside the U.S. in the future.
