Canvas Raises $50M for Diversity Recruitment

Canvas, the world’s first Diversity Recruitment Platform^TM, announced a Series C round of $50 million led by Owl Ventures, with participation from Sequoia, Lachy Groom, Zoom Apps Fund, HighSage Ventures, BAM Elevate and Fifth Down Capital. Coupled with the Series C is the launch of a new product, CanvasDiversity Analytics & Benchmarking ^™, which will set the industry standard for increasing diversity in Corporate America.

“The biggest problem in recruiting right now isn’t talent or opportunity, it’s data,” said Ben Herman, CEO of Canvas. “Every company may have good intentions to spearhead diversity initiatives, but research shows that most diversity programs aren’t increasing diversity. We want to change that for businesses by improving accessibility to the best underrepresented talent with insights based on self reported data – while creating systems of accountability that actually move the needle.”

Canvas is trailblazing a new industry category in recruiting that helps companies take action on their diversity goals by utilizing candidates’ self-reported data to identify talent, rather than inferred data that might be inaccurate or illegal.

Canvas plans to use the Series C proceeds to expand its product into other industries and verticals outside of technology, and address later stages of people’s careers. The company will also make new R&D investments to further develop the Canvas platform’s insights and recommendation systems.

Announcement: Canvas Raises $50M for Diversity Recruitment