This startup is betting job seekers will pay to land a job

Refer is a "reverse recruiter" — job seekers pay a success fee (about 20% of the first month's salary) only if they land a role, flipping the traditional recruiter-employer model.
An AI agent called Lia makes introductions only after both candidate and employer show interest; Refer says over half of users get an interview within 24 hours and the platform has facilitated 5,000+ interviews.
The San Francisco startup just closed a previously unannounced $7.5M seed round (on top of an earlier $2.5M), and users like recent grad Hansheng Liu report getting hired through the service and being willing to pay the fee.