After graduating from Cornell University, Christophe Gerlach spent nearly two years investing exclusively in HR technology startups at General Atlantic. Although the investment was exciting, Gerlach was eager to get back into entrepreneurship.
While attending Cornell University, Gerlach (pictured above, right) founded and sold a food delivery startup with Pedro Bobrow (pictured above, left), a classmate from Brazil. And in late 2022, Gerlach and Bobrow (formerly a product manager at Lyft) teamed up again, combining their domain expertise and cultural roots to launch Comp, a Brazil-focused HR technology startup.
Comp builds AI-powered HR software that can assist with tasks such as recruiting, setting compensation policies, and designing performance appraisal systems. The startup also offers “forward deployment” experts (former human resources executives) who work with customers to design compensation, performance, and recruitment strategies.
While Brazilian companies often hire compensation consultants, forward-deploying HR executives should be viewed as an extension of their existing HR team, not as a consultant, Gerlach said.
These executives also play a key role in refining Comp’s technology. “Our forward-based HR executives initially do all the work manually, and then use that work to train the AI to think in best practices,” Gerlach said.
The idea, of course, is that over time Comp’s AI agents will become fully autonomous and capable of performing traditional HR functions.
Comp currently offers expert-powered, AI-supported HR services, but its goal is to replace both traditional consulting firms and HR software. Gerlach said: “Rippling sells software to help junior HR teams be more productive. We are the HR team.”
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To that end, Comp this week raised a $17.25 million Series A round led by Khosla Ventures, marking its first investment in a Brazilian company. Keith Rabois, Khosla’s general partner, has joined Comp’s board of directors as part of the deal.
Comp is positioning itself as an AI alternative to traditional compensation consulting firms such as Mercer, Korn Ferry, and Willis Towers Watson. It also competes with global HR platforms such as Ripling and Workday.
Gerlach said Comp was launched in Brazil because many companies there lack traditional HR software, allowing startups to introduce new automation models rather than competing with established platforms.
The business model already seems to be gaining traction in Brazil, where customers include Nubank, QuintoAndar, Creditas and “almost every unicorn company in Brazil,” Gerlach said. The startup is currently aiming to expand to the US and other countries.
Other investors in Comp’s Series A included existing backers Kaszek and Canary, as well as new investors Abstract Ventures and Endeavor Catalyst.
