Case Study
How AfterQuery uses Contrario to hire across every core function
AfterQuery went from three co-founders to thirty employees in twelve months. Here’s how an embedded recruiting partnership scaled with them without compromising the bar.
Arya Marwaha
Co-founder & CEO
Apr 16, 2026
9
Days to first hire from role posting
17
Roles open since the Series A
$300M
Valuation at Series A, April 2026
AfterQuery was founded with a clear thesis: the best foundation models need the highest quality data, and curating that data requires an exceptional team to match.
In under one year, co-founders Spencer Mateega and Carlos Georgescu grew their team from 3 people to 30+. In April 2026, they announced their $30M Series A at a $300M valuation.
AfterQuery's hiring profile is deliberately diverse. Engineers from leading technology companies work alongside analysts from quantitative hedge funds and operators from top consulting firms.
"What we care about is people who are able to pick up new ideas very quickly."
Spencer Mateega — Co-Founder & CEO, AfterQuery
Naren D.
Founding Engineer
BRIAN H.
Founding Growth
Spencer M.
Co-founder & CEO
Carlos G.
Co-Founder & CTO
The Problem
Founders can't do it alone
In AfterQuery's earliest days, sourcing and outreach happened the way it does at most early-stage startups: the founders tried doing it themselves.
At three people, it's manageable. At the pace AfterQuery needed to grow—across multiple functions, without sacrificing quality—it was not.
They were screening for a quality of thinking and a disposition toward ownership that requires careful calibration to identify consistently, as well as a large, well-targeted pipeline to find candidates reliably.
The Solution
Embedded from day one
When AfterQuery engaged Contrario, the relationship was structured as an ongoing partnership.
Contrario delivered curated candidate profiles weekly, integrated directly with AfterQuery's Ashby ATS for real-time pipeline visibility, and held regular sessions with leadership to refine candidate success criteria as the company's needs evolved.
Operationally, Contrario worked within AfterQuery's existing systems. Candidates surfaced in Slack and were sent to Ashby to keep the process as smooth as possible.
"Contrario is able to meet us where we already are. They've been quite helpful getting us in front of the right people."
— Spencer Mateega, Co-Founder & CEO
The Team
Recruiters who operate like partners
Dan Sherman placed founding engineer Naren Duggirala after identifying him based on a combination of strong academic credentials, applied AI experience at Amazon, and independent projects reflecting a drive for ownership.
The Contrario team had several weekly check-in calls with AfterQuery to help better calibrate the candidates they were sending. Dan relayed what was coming next and the best ways to prepare Naren for success leading up to the offer.
"A lot of times you talk to recruiters and it's very corporate — a means to an end for everybody. Dan was very human. It felt like he was genuinely looking out for my best interests. We still text each other today."
— Naren Duggirala, Founding Engineer
Michael Crescenzo placed founding growth hire Brian Hendricks. From first contact, Michael focused on making sure the fit was right for both sides.
"From the get-go, Michael ensured it was a quality fit and that I wasn't going to be wasting my time. I felt confident going in, knowing what I needed to ask to make sure this was worth it for both parties."
— Brian Hendricks, Founding Growth
The impact
Hires that hit the ground running, and keep going
Naren completed a rigorous work trial and quickly distinguished himself for the quality that had stood out early in the process: high agency with an appetite for ambiguity.
Brian assumed ownership of the growth function immediately, building AfterQuery's go-to-market capability from the ground up.
"Brian has been able to take a lot of agency and own everything end to end. He just took the job and ran with it."
— Spencer Mateega, Co-Founder & CEO
Brian now partners with Contrario directly to hire for the growth team, on the other side of the process that brought him to AfterQuery.
Some placements will close a role. The right ones open a partnership.
Scale without compromise
AfterQuery's headcount has grown tenfold, but the standard has not changed.
AfterQuery builds infrastructure that powers the world's most capable AI systems. Contrario builds the team that makes it possible.
"What's important is that Contrario is able to maintain the same bar as the number of people increases. We've been extremely happy."
— Spencer Mateega, Co-Founder & CEO
AfterQuery
Applied Research Lab
Series A · Apr 2026
$30M
raised
Valuation
$300M
Read Series A announcement
Industry
Applied Research Lab
Headquarters
San Francisco, CA
Employees
30+
Stage
Series A
Founders
Spencer Mateega
Co-founder & CEO
Carlos Georgescu
Co-founder & CTO
Roles Hired via Contrario
Founding Engineer
Founding Growth
10+ roles ongoing…
See how Contrario can build your team
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