Milestone · Enterprise Software & IT

Keka builds AI into HR platform

By Startup Enthusiast · 12 June 2026

What they do

Keka offers a unified platform for payroll, attendance, hiring, performance, and workforce analytics

Keka revenue reached ₹130 Cr+ Keka serves over 10,000 organisations globally and targets deeper presence in India, Middle East, and US

Keka was launched in 2016 as a unified HR platform tracking the employee lifecycle from hiring to retirement.
Founder Vijay Yalamanchili observed the HR tech market was fragmented with separate payroll and attendance tools in 2014.
Keka now offers a unified platform for payroll, attendance, hiring, performance management, employee engagement, and workforce analytics.
The platform also manages onboarding, OKRs, geofencing, timesheets, resource allocation, and profitability tracking.
Keka is embedding AI across hiring, performance management, and workforce planning workflows.
AI features include automated job descriptions, candidate screening, interview questions in Keka Hire, and AI-assisted goal setting with role-based OKR recommendations.
Keka also uses AI for candidate communication and workforce insights.

The Covid-19 pandemic was a major inflection point that accelerated enterprise adoption of Keka.
More than 50% of Indian businesses still do not use a formal HR system, according to the founder.
Keka's early growth was driven by fast-growing mid-market businesses in tier II and emerging hubs.
Keka is positioned as a broader workforce operations platform beyond payroll and attendance.

Keka offers a unified platform for payroll, attendance, hiring, performance management, employee engagement, and workforce analytics.
The platform also manages onboarding, OKRs, geofencing, timesheets, resource allocation, and profitability tracking.
Keka serves more than 10,000 organisations globally.
Keka's revenue is ₹130 Cr+.
Keka's revenue in 2021 was ₹14.5 Cr.
Keka achieved 10X ARR growth since its 2021 institutional funding round.
Keka gained traction in healthcare and logistics by solving shift scheduling, overtime, and payroll accuracy.
Keka's core thesis is to integrate workforce workflows into a single platform instead of point solutions.
The founder described the product as the 'iPhone of HRMS' — simple, intuitive, secure, designed for daily use.

Keka plans to deepen its presence across India, Middle East, and US.
Keka expects rising opportunities in healthcare, logistics, manufacturing, and professional services.
Keka is embedding AI across hiring, performance management, and workforce planning workflows.