Expressnews
Kattankulathur, March 5, 2026:
The SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST) has taken a significant step toward transforming academic administration by launching an Artificial Intelligence-powered recruitment agent for faculty hiring in collaboration with Prayag.ai. The innovative AI platform, named “Scout,” is designed to streamline and enhance the faculty recruitment process through intelligent automation and evidence-based evaluation.
As a university that consistently emphasizes the adoption of emerging technologies, SRMIST has introduced this AI-driven recruitment initiative to identify and onboard intellectually strong and capable faculty members. Over the past three months, SRMIST worked closely with Prayag.ai to develop the AI agent capable of evaluating key criteria such as preparing students to meet industry demands, fostering cutting-edge research among faculty and students, and promoting contributions toward societal development and nation-building.
The AI agent, Scout, automates the recruitment workflow from resume screening to final interview evaluation. By analyzing job descriptions, the system identifies the competencies and skills required for a role and evaluates candidate resumes accordingly. Based on this analysis, candidates are categorized as Shortlisted, Under Review, or Rejected, with each decision supported by evidence-based insights explaining the reasoning behind the evaluation.
The platform also supports automated screening assessments and AI-moderated interviews. Candidates undergo secure facial biometric authentication followed by knowledge assessments and conversational AI interviews, where questions are dynamically generated based on the candidate’s resume and the specific job requirements. This enables a more relevant and role-specific evaluation process.
Additionally, Scout includes an AI-based malpractice monitoring system that detects suspicious activities during interviews and flags them for review. At the conclusion of the process, the platform generates a comprehensive evaluation report detailing overall scores, criterion-level insights, and an AI-generated recommendation for hiring or rejection along with supporting reasoning.
Because the entire workflow is AI-driven and rule-based, Scout ensures fairness, objectivity, and consistency in candidate evaluation. Designed particularly for universities and institutions managing high-volume recruitment, the platform enables faster and more efficient hiring while reducing traditional recruitment bottlenecks.
Speaking at the launch, Prof. C. Muthamizhchelvan, Vice-Chancellor of SRMIST, highlighted the importance of integrating emerging technologies into academic processes, “SRMIST is proud to be the first university to introduce an AI-powered agent for faculty recruitment. Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming every sector, and higher education cannot remain untouched by this evolution. This initiative brings out a new dimension in the evolution of AI within academia by integrating intelligent systems into institutional decision-making. By leveraging AI in the recruitment process, we are enabling a more objective, efficient, and future-ready approach to identifying faculty who will contribute meaningfully to education and research,” he said.
He further emphasised that universities must move beyond traditional approaches and leverage AI to enhance administrative processes while enabling faculty to focus more on curriculum design, research, and student engagement.
Expressing appreciation for the collaboration, P. Vaidyanathan, CEO of Prayag.ai, said the partnership with SRMIST reflects the institution’s forward-looking approach to technology adoption. “It is a privilege to collaborate with SRMIST, an institution that consistently demonstrates the vision to adopt emerging technologies at the right time. Scout is designed to simplify recruitment while providing evidence-based insights that support better hiring decisions.”
Dr. Leenus Martin M., Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, SRMIST emphasized the collaborative effort behind building the system: “The development of this AI agent involved close interaction between faculty experts and the industry team to ensure that the system reflects the academic expectations of SRMIST. By training the AI on parameters relevant to teaching, research, and innovation, we have built a platform capable of identifying faculty who can contribute meaningfully to the university ecosystem.”
Highlighting the technological development process, Dr. Revathi Venkataraman, Chairperson of the School of Computing at SRMIST, noted that the system was designed to align with the university’s academic standards: “Artificial Intelligence has the potential to transform administrative processes in higher education. By adopting AI-driven recruitment, SRMIST is taking a progressive step toward improving transparency, efficiency, and scalability in faculty hiring.”
The initiative emerged through discussions between SRMIST and industry partners on potential collaborative innovations. Dr. B. Venkatachalapathy, Professor at the Directorate of Research, SRMIST, explained that the project evolved through strong academia–industry collaboration and active support from the School of Computing faculty. “This initiative demonstrates the power of collaboration between academia and industry. While faculty members possess strong expertise, industry partnerships help translate ideas into practical products. With the support of Prayag.ai and the School of Computing team, we were able to develop an AI solution that can significantly enhance faculty recruitment,” he said.
The launch marks a significant milestone in SRMIST’s ongoing efforts to integrate Artificial Intelligence into academic and administrative processes. With this initiative, the university aims to set a benchmark for technology-enabled governance in higher education while strengthening its commitment to innovation, academic excellence, and industry collaboration.
