Gap deploys AI to manage holiday seasonal hiring

Gap Inc. has launched an AI-powered tool, Bridgette, to assist with seasonal hiring as the holiday retail period approaches. The conversational interface is designed to help applicants navigate job opportunities and schedule interviews, addressing an expected influx of 200,000 seasonal applications.

The tool, developed by Paradox and integrated into Gap’s Workday Recruiting platform, was tested across over 100 stores and six regional distribution centers since June. During this pilot phase, the system facilitated over 7,000 interview bookings.

Chief People Officer Amy Thompson stated that the technology is intended to remove administrative friction from the hiring process. The goal is to allow internal hiring managers to focus on personal candidate interactions rather than coordination tasks. Gap emphasizes that the automated system handles logistics, while human managers retain control over final hiring decisions.

The deployment is part of a wider effort by Gap to integrate AI across its product, customer, and employee experience operations. The company aims to automate repetitive tasks to simplify workflows throughout the organization.