Sarah Andrabi hopes job seekers who use her company for employment will stick around and become clients. | Photo courtesy of Sarah Andrabi
What you probably already know: Sarah Andrabi didn’t set out to make her startup a job-searching tool. It just worked out that way. Andrabi, a former Microsoft and Dropbox engineer (she most recently served as head of AI and machine learning at Dropbox), co-founded AI startup Liminary as an “AI memory layer” for knowledge workers. At its core, Liminary is a workplace application tool that saves information from webpages, PDFS, YouTube videos, notes, AI chats and emails and then automatically calls it up when it becomes relevant. But Andrabi, with her deep AI background, is offering job-seeking tech workers six months of free access to anyone actively looking for employment.
Why it matters: Three-quarters of the more than 9,000 layoffs across King County through Aug. 18 this year involved tech workers. Andrabi notes that Liminary’s product translates naturally for job-hunters, who can upload their resume, and the AI uses information to help identify relevant job opportunities and research. It can also help candidates prepare for interviews by resurfacing examples from their own work history. “You can upload your resume, and Luminary learns what it is, the kind of work you’re doing,” she says. “You can basically say, ‘Hey, this is my resume. Help me find jobs in these areas that I’m experienced in and can also keep you up to date on everything that’s happening?”
What it means: Liminary describes it core product as “AI for professionals and small teams,” and Andrabi views the free job search function as a marketing and business development tool. So far, about 75 job seekers have used the free service. “At the end of the day, we want to build products that make someone’s life better and are valuable,” she says. “If any of these people, after six months, find a job and think the tool actually helped them, they’re likely to continue using it.” Apart from those looking for work, Liminary has had several individuals and small teams use its core product but hasn’t yet targeted larger companies.
What happens next: Andrabi’s deep tech background includes a stint as a resident expert at AI House, an incubator for founders in Seattle, as well as founder in residence at Madrona Ventures, where she incubated Liminary and spun it out as an independent company in late 2024. She says AI is changing too rapidly for people to simply “learn it once,” which was part of her motivation for founding the company. She has served as CEO since last December. “You could argue that we’re competing with the likes of Otter or Granola or some of the other meeting notetakers, but our power is bringing everything back to you,” she says. “You’re using AI that helps you in your own agency, rather than replacing your thinking.”
