Imagine building an elite product team in under ten minutes, sourcing not just from a global pool of vetted talent but with AI freelance agents ready to collaborate from day one. That’s the reality Shakers is creating, offering fast, flexible access to experts as businesses scramble to stay ahead in an increasingly agile and tech-driven economy. As remote work and automation reshape enterprise needs, the demand for platforms merging AI and human talent is reaching a tipping point, and Shakers is positioning itself at the epicentre.
AI freelance talent platform Shakers has raised €14M in Series A funding to accelerate its mission of transforming how businesses connect with top-tier tech freelancers across Europe. The Madrid-based startup, founded in 2021, is building an AI-powered workforce orchestration platform that allows companies to assemble and deploy hybrid teams of specialised talent and autonomous AI freelance agents in minutes.
The €14M Series A round was led by Partech, with participation from KFund, Brighteye Ventures, Athos Capital and Wayra. Senior Principal Simone Riva said, “At Partech, we believe that while AI is reshaping the way we work, exceptional talent will always be at the heart of the future of work. From our very first conversation, it was clear the Shakers team is building something special, a fast, intuitive platform tailored to the flexible workforce of tomorrow. They’re redefining how companies find, hire, and collaborate with top talent. We’re proud to back this visionary team and are excited to support them as they scale across Spain, Europe, and beyond.”
The new funding will support Shakers’ expansion across Europe, including doubling its team size over the next 12 months and enhancing its AI integrations. By 2027, the company aims to have orchestrated over 10,000 hybrid projects, solidifying its position as a leading player in the AI-powered freelance economy.
Redefining hiring in an AI-first labour market
At its core, the AI freelance talent platform solves a growing problem: traditional work models can’t meet the rising need for on-demand, high-skill tech talent. Freelancers, particularly in the tech sector, are leading this shift, rapidly adopting AI tools and choosing flexibility over long-term contracts.
Shakers’ founders are no strangers to the changing dynamics of work. CEO Héctor Mata, COO Nico de Luis, CPO Adrián de Pedro, and CRO Jaime Castillo are all serial entrepreneurs with deep experience in software development and AI. Originally from Spain, they launched Shakers after facing first-hand the friction in hiring and freelancing processes. The idea for the platform grew from their frustrations, aiming to build something that would remove inefficiencies for both sides of the talent equation.
Today, Shakers is already working with over 450 companies, including household names like Microsoft, Inditex, and Telefónica. The platform has grown revenue by over 6x in the past year, with 60% of revenue from returning customers and 30% originating organically across European markets. It now hosts a vetted community of over 10,000 freelance tech specialists, or “freeworkers” – highly motivated professionals who thrive on dynamic projects without the confines of traditional employment.
AI freelance platform tailored for the hybrid future
What sets Shakers apart from traditional freelancer platforms is its deep integration of AI in the hiring and team-building process. Its proprietary AI-powered matchmaking engine analyses over 1,000 data points per user, from skills and experience to soft traits and cultural fit. Combined with the Shakers Verified pre-vetting tool, businesses can skip early-stage interviews and technical assessments entirely. Teams can be assembled instantly, saving time and ensuring immediate value creation.
Shakers recently acquired Rviewer, a Barcelona-based AI startup that enhances their technical assessment capabilities. This strategic move allows Shakers to validate developers’ coding skills through sophisticated AI evaluation across quality, scalability, and testing. “After two years investing time and resources developing this technology, we’re convinced that the added value it brings to Shakers and our clients will elevate the talent selection process to the next level,” explains Mauro Gómez, CTO and co-founder of Rviewer.
Shakers’ AI acts as an intelligent co-pilot throughout the hiring process. When clients define a project, the AI asks specific questions about requirements, ensuring that nothing important is overlooked and the scope is crystal clear. The system reviews thousands of profiles in seconds, identifying professionals who have completed similar jobs with strong results, matching by keywords, affinity, and proven success patterns.
Scaling the infrastructure of tomorrow’s workforce
With competition from platforms like Malt, Toptal, Upwork, and Fiverr, Shakers differentiates itself through end-to-end AI orchestration, verified talent pools, and built-in freelancer benefits. Upwork, for example, has launched features like Job Post Generator and Upwork Chat Pro, while Malt has developed its own AI model tailored to freelancer matching. Fiverr’s AI features, such as Fiverr Go, enable freelancers to automatically generate work samples and allow clients to create products using AI.
Shakers, however, enables “Squads”-small groups of freelancers who regularly collaborate to find projects together, recognising that many complex technical challenges require coordinated teams rather than individuals. “With Shakers, we can focus solely on delivering exceptional work,” says Sofia Martín, a UX designer who leads a five-person freelance collective. “They handle the client acquisition and administrative overhead, allowing our team to focus on what we do best.”
Alongside its core platform, Shakers is developing what it calls the ‘Freelancer OS.’ This includes integrated services for banking, insurance, and productivity benefits traditionally reserved for full-time employees but offered to freelancers without sacrificing flexibility. It’s part of the Shakers’ mission to make freelancing viable and aspirational.
As demand surges for specialised tech talent that can be deployed instantly, the Shakers model offers a glimpse into how companies will scale teams in the AI-first workplace. By balancing automation with human ingenuity and speed with quality, the startup is disrupting the freelance marketplace and reshaping how work gets done.
