As artificial intelligence reshapes how information is discovered, one startup is betting that the future of search will not be built by those who follow the rulebook, but by those willing to rewrite it. Exa AI, an AI search infrastructure startup backed by Nvidia’s investment arm, is expanding into Singapore as it begins a deeper push into the Asia-Pacific region. The move signals both geographic ambition and a larger shift underway in how search itself is being reimagined.
At the centre of this expansion is hiring, but not in the conventional sense.
Speaking in an interview, CEO Will Bryk made it clear that Exa isn’t just looking for engineers with strong résumés. Instead, the company is prioritising people who question assumptions, challenge established systems, and are comfortable thinking from scratch.
In Bryk’s words, the ideal candidate is “rebellious”, someone who doesn’t feel bound by how things have traditionally been done and is willing to rethink search from the ground up.
Rebuilding Search for an AI-First World
The premise behind Exa’s hiring philosophy is rooted in a deeper technological shift. Search, as it has existed for decades, was built for human queries. But that model is beginning to change rapidly as AI systems themselves become active users of search infrastructure.
According to Bryk, this shift requires a fundamental rethink.
AI systems interact with information differently from humans. They require structured, scalable, and machine-optimised data retrieval systems, something legacy search engines were never designed for. As a result, building search tools for AI isn’t just an upgrade; it’s a reinvention.
That reinvention, Bryk suggests, cannot come from incremental thinking.
Singapore Becomes the Next Base
Exa’s decision to set up in Singapore is a strategic one. The city-state has increasingly positioned itself as a hub for high-quality engineering talent and deep-tech innovation.
The new office will focus heavily on building large-scale infrastructure, particularly systems that can crawl, process, and organise vast amounts of data across the internet. This includes backend systems, data pipelines, and core product engineering.
For now, the hiring plan is relatively focused, with up to 10 roles expected to be filled in the near term. But the intent is clear: build a strong technical foundation in the region before scaling further.
Hiring for Mindset, Not Just Experience
One of the more unconventional aspects of Exa’s hiring approach is its emphasis on values over experience.
Bryk indicated that the company is open to both junior and senior engineers, placing greater importance on curiosity, passion for building systems, and the ability to think independently. Traditional markers like years of experience are not treated as the primary filter.
To evaluate candidates beyond interviews, Exa reportedly brings them to San Francisco for short working sessions with the team. The idea is to observe not just technical output, but how individuals think, collaborate, and engage in real-world problem-solving.
It’s a process designed to answer a simple question: how does someone actually work when the constraints are real?
AI Is Already Changing How Code Gets Written
Inside the company, the shift toward AI is already visible in day-to-day operations.
Bryk noted that a significant portion of Exa’s codebase is written with the help of AI tools. This reflects a broader trend across the industry, where developers are increasingly working alongside AI rather than independently of it.
In such an environment, speed and adaptability matter as much as technical depth. Engineers are expected not just to write code, but to effectively leverage AI systems to build faster and more efficiently.
Exa AI: A $700 Million Bet on the Future of Search
Founded in 2021, Exa has grown quickly, raising $85 million in a Series B round that valued the company at $700 million. Its backers include Benchmark, Lightspeed, Y Combinator, and NVentures, Nvidia’s venture capital arm.
The company says it already serves thousands of customers, including AI startups, consulting firms, and private equity players that rely on large-scale data retrieval and analysis.
Underlying this growth is a bold assumption: that AI-driven searches will soon outnumber those made by humans.
If that prediction holds, the infrastructure powering search will need to evolve just as quickly.
Exa’s expansion into Singapore is not just about hiring engineers or entering a new market. It reflects a broader transition in the technology landscape, one where search is no longer a static tool for users, but a dynamic system increasingly used by machines themselves.
And in that world, the people building these systems may need to think very differently from those who built the last generation.
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