Apriora vs Maki, an AI recruiter against an assessment suite
Apriora vs Maki turns on how you want candidates judged. Pick Apriora, now called Alex, if a conversational first round by phone, video, SMS or WhatsApp is the main job. Pick Maki if you want skills tests, a voice interview and a published bias audit together, with EU AI Act alignment.
Apriora vs Maki, side by side
Apriora now trades as Alex, so its column draws on alex.com. Every cell was read on the vendor's own site on 5 October 2026.
| What you are comparing | Apriora (Alex) | Maki |
|---|---|---|
| How it frames itself | Interview everyone. Hire the best. | The intelligence running your hiring, end to end |
| AI interview | Two way conversation with follow ups, by phone, video, SMS or WhatsApp | Mochi, a voice agent on a web or phone call that probes when answers need it |
| Skills testing | Proctor, described as confirming what candidates know | Shiro across 300+ competencies and Ken across 400+ skills |
| Help with human interviews | Coordinator books qualified candidates onto your team's calendars | Kumi schedules, and Tomo guides live interviews with transcription and scoring |
| Fairness evidence | States no candidate is auto rejected by AI without human input | NYC Local Law 144 audit by Holistic AI for Mochi and Shiro, March 2026 |
| Certifications | ISO 27001 and ISO 42001, plus SOC 2 Type II | ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA and WCAG 2.1 AA |
| Pricing model | No price shown; buyers book a 30 minute demo first | Not published. Credits per candidate interaction, by quote |
Neither vendor prints a price. Read on alex.com and makipeople.com on 5 October 2026; check both before you sign.
Two ideas of what counts as evidence
Alex treats the conversation as the evidence. Its pitch is to interview every applicant rather than read every resume, then hand recruiters a searchable transcript, a role fit score and fraud flags. The breadth of channels follows from that: a warehouse applicant on WhatsApp and a nurse on a phone call both get the same structured conversation.
Maki treats measurement as the evidence. Its agents are built around tests with a stated science base, a scoring grid of behaviourally anchored ratings, and a bias audit you can read. The voice interview is one step in a chain that runs from intake through tests to a hire recommendation with a confidence level.
Choose Apriora if, choose Maki if
Each case below names the deciding fact from the vendor's own site, plus the question worth asking before you commit.
Most applicants apply from a phone and rarely check email, so a link to a web call goes unanswered.
Alex. It interviews by SMS and WhatsApp as well as phone and video, which meets people in the app they already use.
Maki's Mochi also sends SMS follow ups and calls back, so test reach on both.
An early careers programme with thousands of applicants and little work history to judge.
Maki. It lists early talent as a use case and pairs skills tests with the voice interview, so you rank on ability, not resumes.
Ask which Ken tests map to your competency framework.
Legal wants a bias audit on file before any AI touches a hiring decision in New York.
Maki. It publishes a Local Law 144 audit by Holistic AI covering Mochi and Shiro, dated March 2026.
Ask Alex for its own audit; its ethics page states human review but names no auditor.
You have seen candidates use stand ins or read AI answers during remote screens.
Alex. Verify, Proctor and Identity are separate products aimed at fraud and identity checks.
Maki has a proctoring page too, so compare what each actually flags.
How a hiring week runs on each
The same opening, 400 applicants for one role, plays out differently. These steps follow what each vendor says its product does.
- Alex: screen the resumes Resume Screens checks each applicant against role requirements and writes a plain language summary of strengths and gaps, then hands qualified people on to the interview.
- Alex: interview everyone who qualifies Candidates schedule or start the AI interview on any device, in the language they prefer. The recruiter reads transcripts and scores, and Coordinator books the shortlist.
- Maki: triggered from the ATS Agents run from inside Workday, iCIMS, SuccessFactors or another of its 30+ connected systems. Shiro screens skills and Mochi holds the voice interview.
- Maki: test, then recommend Ken runs the deeper assessment, Kumi books the human interview and Tomo structures it live. The output is a hire recommendation with a confidence level, and a person makes the call.
Apriora vs Maki at a glance
- Alex leads with the AI interview and reaches candidates on 4 channels, including WhatsApp
- Maki leads with measurement: skills tests, a voice agent and a scoring grid
- Maki publishes a named bias audit; Alex publishes a no auto rejection policy and ISO 42001
- Both sit on your ATS, and neither prints a price
Questions to bring to both demos
Both sales processes start with a demo, so arrive with the questions their sites leave open.
- How is a credit or interview counted when a candidate drops off halfway?
- Who writes the scoring criteria, and can we edit them per role?
- What exactly writes back to our ATS record?
- Which languages are fully scored, not just transcribed?
- Can a recruiter replay the recording, or only read the transcript?
- How does the candidate learn they are speaking with an AI?
Neither one finds new people
A one line brief read into editable filters, then results ranked against your must haves.
Alex and Maki both judge people who have already applied. If the role needs candidates who never saw the advert, The Cognitive searches ~900M public profiles from a plain English brief, reveals verified emails and phones, and can then run a 10 or 20 minute live AI video interview with whoever you pick.
Keep reading
Apriora review · Apriora alternatives · Maki review · Maki alternatives
How this was checked
Apriora facts come from alex.com, where apriora.ai redirects, and Maki facts from makipeople.com, all read on 5 October 2026. Customer outcome percentages from both sites are left out because they cannot be checked.
Frequently asked questions
Is Apriora better than Maki?
It depends on what you want to measure. Apriora, now Alex, is the stronger fit when a conversational first round across phone, video, SMS and WhatsApp is the core need. Maki fits when you want skills tests, a voice interview and a named bias audit in one system. Run both on the same role and compare the reports.
What is Maki People?
Maki People is a hiring platform built from 5 named AI agents. Shiro screens skills, Mochi runs voice interviews, Ken runs deeper assessments, Kumi schedules and Tomo assists human interviewers. It sells to enterprises in sectors such as financial services, consulting, retail and staffing, and runs on top of an existing ATS.
Apriora vs Maki pricing: how does each charge?
Neither publishes a price. Maki describes a credit based model where you activate the agents you need and pay per candidate interaction, quoted by sales. Alex shows no pricing page and routes buyers to a 30 minute demo. Ask each to quote the same volume over 12 months so the numbers compare.
Does Maki do video interviews?
Not that its Mochi page states. Candidates join a web call or a phone call and speak with the AI, which adapts and probes. Alex lists video alongside phone, SMS and WhatsApp. If seeing the candidate matters to you, that difference matters.
Is Apriora the same company as Alex?
Yes. Apriora.ai redirects to alex.com, and the site footer reads Apriora Inc. dba Alex. Older reviews and comparisons still use the Apriora name, so search for both when you check references.
Which has better compliance, Apriora or Maki?
They show different evidence. Alex lists SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and ISO 42001 and says no candidate is auto rejected by AI without human input. Maki lists ISO 27001, GDPR, CCPA, WCAG 2.1 AA, EU AI Act alignment and a March 2026 Local Law 144 audit by Holistic AI. SOC 2 is not mentioned on Maki's security page.
Do Apriora and Maki work with Workday?
Both list it. Workday appears on Alex's integrations page among 33+ supported ATS, and Maki features it as a native integration alongside SAP SuccessFactors and iCIMS, within 30+ connected systems. Ask each whether results arrive as a note, a score field or an attachment.
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