LinkedIn has introduced a new AI-powered conversational query feature within its Recruiter tool, allowing hiring teams to search for candidates using natural, plain-language prompts instead of relying on traditional filters or Boolean search strings. Recruiters can now type requests such as “Find me marketing managers in Dublin with sales enablement experience” or “Find someone like [ideal candidate],” and AI transforms these queries into refined candidate searches, filling filter criteria with relevant skills, roles, and context shared in the prompt.

This innovation is built atop LinkedIn’s broader AI strategy, aligned closely with its parent company Microsoft’s investments in generative AI through OpenAI. Platforms like Vertex AI and GPT models drive the underlying intelligence, supporting features across LinkedIn from conversational search to profile summaries.

The new feature aims to simplify talent discovery and save recruiters time previously spent constructing complex searches. With AI assistance, recruiters can uncover better-fit candidates, even those not actively job seeking, by using conversational descriptions akin to speaking with a seasoned colleague. Recruiter users with this feature see AI-generated filter suggestions, including job titles, skill sets, locations, and experience levels. They can then adjust results by accepting or refining insights, creating a conversational search experience that becomes smarter over time.

Recruiter conversational search is currently available to customers using the Recruiter and Recruiter Professional Services editions, with languages including English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, and Turkish. Analyst feedback suggests the tool could transform hiring workflows by giving recruiters more time to engage with candidates. LinkedIn highlights that around 20 hours per week are spent on administrative recruiter tasks — translating job briefs into technical searches — and conversational AI aims to offload a significant portion of that burden .

While the feature remains in rollout, early adopters such as Siemens and Robert Walters report productivity improvements: candidate outreach that once took hours is now completed in minutes, aided by AI-generated candidate lists and message drafts. Despite concerns about AI-driven bias, LinkedIn reports that the system incorporates guardrails to mitigate unintended exclusion and promotes inclusivity. Recruiters remain in full control of final decisions and can review every AI-suggested filter or candidate .

In essence, LinkedIn’s conversational Recruiter search is a pivotal step toward making recruitment more intuitive and intelligent—reducing complexity while still preserving recruiter expertise. As AI takes on routine search tasks, recruiters are freed to focus on deeper interactions and human-centered decision-making, reshaping how talent is discovered and engaged.