LinkedIn's new AI feature lets you search for people in natural language

LinkedIn has introduced an AI-powered people search tool for Premium users in the US, allowing natural-language queries instead of traditional keyword-based searches

LinkedIn has begun rolling out an AI-powered search feature for Premium subscribers. The new AI feature lets users search for professionals using plain-language queries — for example, “someone who’s grown a small business” or “an expert in digital marketing” — instead of relying on exact job titles, company names, or multiple filters. LinkedIn says the feature combines its professional profile data with AI to surface people whose backgrounds match the user’s intent.

LinkedIn AI search: How does it work

The new people search accepts natural-language requests and returns ranked results that LinkedIn’s systems judge to be relevant to the query. LinkedIn frames the change as a move away from literal, keyword-driven searches toward conversational prompts that capture intent.

 

 

According to the company, the feature uses its existing professional dataset (profile information, roles, skills, and experience) together with AI models to identify members who fit the described criteria. 

Why is this required?

Until now, finding a person on LinkedIn typically required specific details. Users either had to search for a name, company, certification, or job title, and even then, if they were looking for people in a specific department of that company, then they had to play with keywords and filters till they got the desired result.

 

This limited discovery for situations when users did not know those exact terms, or if the person they’re searching for does not have that exact title on their profile. The AI search aims to broaden discovery by matching intent to profiles, even if the precise keywords aren’t present on a profile.

 

LinkedIn AI search: Availability

AI-powered people search is currently available only to LinkedIn Premium subscribers in the US. LinkedIn said that it plans to expand the feature to more regions and membership tiers in the coming months; however, no specific timeline was provided.