What are Kepler and Invenias?
Kepler is a recruitment CRM built around AI Chat and a searchable database. You ask in plain English, and AI Chat searches the whole workspace: candidates, CVs, notes, email threads and call transcripts. It can then create and update records once you approve the change.
Around AI Chat, Kepler covers the rest of a search desk on one plan:
- Matching that scores every candidate from 0 to 100 against the brief
- A notetaker that joins Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Google Meet calls
- Gmail and Outlook sync, with AI-drafted emails you edit and send
- A job-scoped client portal and consent records for every candidate and contact
- CV formatting onto your own branded template, and contact enrichment
- Campaigns, automations and reporting
Invenias by Bullhorn is executive search software for boutique firms. Bullhorn acquired Invenias and sells it alongside Bullhorn Recruitment Cloud for enterprise firms. Its features include longlists built against target companies, off-limits policies, branded candidate reports, consent requests, a client portal and analytics.
What is the main difference between Kepler and Invenias?
The main difference is how you work. In Kepler you ask. A question like “CFOs in Munich who have led a listing” reaches the line in a CV, a note, an email or a recorded call, and AI Chat returns the records as a list you can save.
Kepler then does the follow-up for you. It ranks a shortlist against the brief and shows its evidence, and it turns calls and emails into updates you approve. AI Chat is included on every plan, and Kepler runs in any modern browser on Mac or Windows.
Invenias is built as a search-assignment tool. Its full product is a Windows desktop application that runs with Microsoft Outlook, and Bullhorn’s web application FAQ says the browser-based Essentials app “is not an alternative to the Professional Desktop Application”.
What AI does each product have?
Kepler’s AI Chat is on every page. Ask in plain English and it searches your CVs, notes, emails and call transcripts, and it creates or updates records only after you approve.
Kepler’s other AI work runs in the same product:
- Matching scores every candidate from 0 to 100 against the job. The score is based on criteria taken from the job description, which you can edit, and each criterion shows the line from the CV, call or email behind it.
- The notetaker files the summary, next steps and transcript of each call against the record.
- Emails, calls and messages become suggested updates and tasks you accept or reject.
Invenias has natural language search, AI candidate matching, document search across CVs and proposals, and relationship intelligence. Invenias does not have AI that reads call transcripts or notes and updates records yet.
The Invenias AI Assistant is not switched on by default. It is an optional feature on Person and Assignment records that you request through your Account Manager, and it runs on your firm’s own OpenAI or Azure OpenAI account.
How do Kepler and Invenias compare feature by feature?
Invenias cells come from bullhorn.com and kb.bullhorn.com, checked 6 and 13 Sep 2026. Kepler cells describe the product as of 1 Oct 2026.
| Area | Kepler | Invenias |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | A web app in any modern browser, on Mac or Windows | Windows 11 desktop application with Office. Essentials web app in the browser. |
| AI Chat | On every page and every plan. Ask in plain English and it finds and updates records once you approve. | Optional AI Assistant on Person and Assignment records. You request it and connect your own OpenAI or Azure OpenAI account. |
| Search | Ask in plain English and AI Chat searches your CVs, notes, emails and call transcripts. | Natural language search and document search. Boolean advanced search in the web app. |
| Matching | Scores every candidate from 0 to 100 against the job and shows the line behind each criterion. You can edit the criteria. | AI candidate matching that surfaces ranked profiles |
| Record updates from calls | Calls, emails and messages become updates you approve. | Not available yet |
| Client portal | Included. Clients sign in from an email link, rate candidates 1–5, comment and ask for interviews. CVs can be shared blind. | Invenias Client, only in the Executive Edition |
| Consent records | Records the lawful basis and expiry date for each person, and flags consent that is running out. | Bulk consent requests carrying the purpose and legal basis |
| Client documents | Formats a CV onto your branded template, as Word or PDF. | Candidate assignment report with merge tags, edited in Word |
| Relationships | Every email, call and WhatsApp conversation is linked to the record and searchable. | Relationship intelligence mapping connections across the firm’s network |
| Price | USD 99 per user per month billed annually, on a single plan | Quote-only on every edition |
Do Kepler and Invenias both have a client portal and consent records?
Yes. These are the two areas where the products overlap most.
Client portal. Kepler’s portal is included in the seat. Hiring managers sign in from an email link, with no account to create, and see the candidates you share, optionally blind with a redacted CV. They rate each candidate 1–5, comment and request interviews, and each action lands on the job timeline and in your inbox.
Invenias Client is a premium feature, only in the Executive Edition. Clients see candidate lists, profiles and assessments and give feedback and scores.
Consent records. Kepler keeps consent records for every candidate and contact, with the purpose, lawful basis, framework (GDPR, UK GDPR, PDPA or CCPA), and the date given and valid until. Each record shows whether consent is valid, expiring or expired, campaigns check it, and a nightly check flags what is running out.
Invenias’ product page describes mass-sending consent requests, with emails carrying the purpose and legal basis for holding the data.
How much do Kepler and Invenias cost?
Kepler costs USD 99 per user per month billed annually, or USD 129 monthly. The single plan includes every feature, unlimited records and free migration. AI Chat is included on every plan, monthly and annual, with no add-on or upgrade needed.
Invenias Executive Edition is the like-for-like plan, bundling the Professional edition with Invenias Client, Analytics, Proximity and Premium Data Privacy. It has no public price, and every route ends at a demo request (checked 13 Sep 2026).
- The Essentials (web) and Professional (desktop) editions are also quote-only.
- The AI Assistant runs on OpenAI or Azure OpenAI credentials the firm supplies.
- Bullhorn’s published USD 99 and USD 165 seats are its staffing plans, not Invenias.
Which firms is Kepler built for?
Kepler is built for search firms whose real asset is their records: years of CVs, candidate reports, notes, email threads and call recordings. It suits a team that wants to ask a question and get the right people back, with the reasons shown.
It fits firms that want:
- AI Chat that searches everything and acts once you approve
- A score a partner can explain to a client, criterion by criterion
- A client portal and consent records in the seat price
- Call notes from Teams, Zoom and Meet filed on the right record
- One web app on Mac or Windows, at a published USD 99 per user per month billed annually
Can you migrate from Invenias to Kepler?
Yes. Kepler runs the migration for you, free, on every plan. You send an Invenias export, plus the material a search firm keeps outside the system: candidate reports in Word, market maps in spreadsheets and shared-inbox archives.
Kepler handles the extraction, mapping, de-duplication and checks. Custom fields are rebuilt as real fields, and activity, stages and history come across with the records. Consent records can be loaded into Kepler through CSV import.
Before the full load, you review fifty of your own records, fully parsed, and the move is done in days. The parser is RemakeCV’s, built by the same team and used by 300+ recruitment agencies. Kepler exports your whole workspace at any time with no exit fee.
Frequently asked questions
Is Invenias better than Kepler?
It depends on how you want to work. If you want a modern, easy-to-use CRM with the AI included, where you ask the chat and it finds, ranks and updates records for you, choose Kepler. Kepler is a single plan at USD 99 per user per month billed annually, with a client portal, consent records and free migration, and it runs in any browser. If you want a dedicated search-assignment tool built around a Windows desktop application that runs with Outlook, Invenias is built for that.
What is the difference between Kepler and Invenias for executive search?
Kepler is organised around asking. AI Chat searches CVs, notes, emails and call transcripts, ranks people against the brief with evidence, and suggests updates for approval, all on one USD 99 plan. Invenias by Bullhorn is organised around the retained search assignment, with off-limits policies, branded assignment reports and a Windows desktop application. Both have a client portal and consent records.
Is Invenias still a product, or did Bullhorn absorb it?
It is still a product. Bullhorn acquired Invenias in July 2018 and sells it as “Invenias by Bullhorn”, for boutique firms, alongside Bullhorn Recruitment Cloud for enterprise firms. As of September 2026, invenias.com redirects to Bullhorn’s Invenias product page.
How much does Invenias cost?
Bullhorn publishes no price for any Invenias edition. The comparable plan is the Executive Edition, which bundles the Invenias Client portal and is quoted through an Account Manager. Bullhorn’s published USD 99 and USD 165 seats are staffing plans, not Invenias. Kepler, for comparison, is USD 99 per user per month billed annually, on a single plan with every feature included.
Does Invenias have AI and natural language search?
Kepler’s AI Chat, plain-English search, 0 to 100 matching and updates from calls and emails are all included on every plan. Invenias has natural language search, AI candidate matching, document search and relationship intelligence. Its AI Assistant is optional and runs on your own OpenAI or Azure OpenAI account. Invenias does not have AI that reads call transcripts and updates records yet.
Does Kepler have a client portal and GDPR consent records?
Yes, both, in the seat price. Hiring managers sign in to a job-scoped portal from an email link, rate candidates 1–5, comment and request interviews, with optional blind CVs. Consent records hold the purpose, lawful basis and valid-until date for each person and flag consent that is expiring. Invenias Client is only in the Executive Edition.
Do Kepler and Invenias work on a Mac?
Kepler is one web app that runs the same way in any modern browser, on Mac or Windows, with nothing to install. Invenias’ full desktop application does not run on a Mac. It needs Windows 11, and Mac users are directed to the Essentials web app with the Office 365 add-in.
Sources
Every claim about another vendor on this page comes from that vendor's own public material. Where a vendor does not publish something — pricing is the usual one — this post says so rather than estimating.
- Bullhorn — Invenias Executive Search Platform Product name “Invenias by Bullhorn”; boutique executive search platform; longlist building, branded candidate deliverables, GDPR notifications and consent requests carrying purpose and legal basis, analytics. invenias.com/pricing 301s here; no price published, the page routes to a demo request.
- Invenias knowledge base — Executive Edition Self Service Implementation of Premium Products “Invenias Executive is a premium tier for Invenias by Bullhorn, bringing together Invenias Professional with” Invenias Client, Invenias Analytics, Invenias Proximity and Invenias Premium Data Privacy “in a single bundle”. No price.
- Bullhorn — Executive Search Software Solutions “Invenias by Bullhorn for boutique firms” positioned alongside “Bullhorn Recruitment Cloud for enterprise firms”.
- Bullhorn — What’s next for Invenias: AI, reporting, and the road ahead Available: natural language search, AI candidate matching, document search, relationship intelligence, the candidate assignment report and document editor. Not yet available: AI that analyses call transcripts or notes and updates records.
- Bullhorn acquires Invenias (press release) Dated 24 Jul 2018.
- Invenias knowledge base — Web Application FAQ “Essentials is not an alternative to the Professional Desktop Application”.
- Invenias knowledge base — Minimum & Recommended System Requirements Desktop application on Windows 11 64-bit with Office 2016/2019/2021; Mac users on the Essentials web app plus the O365 add-in.
- Invenias knowledge base — Advanced Search, Invenias Web App Boolean keyword search over primary text fields, positions and the default CV.
- Invenias knowledge base — Invenias AI Assistant (formerly Copilot) FAQ Generative AI on Person and Assignment records in the web application; “bring your own model”.
- Invenias knowledge base — Enabling Invenias AI Assistant “An optional feature. To request this feature for your Invenias database, please reach out to your Invenias Account Manager.” Admin selects OpenAI or Azure OpenAI and enters credentials.
- Invenias knowledge base — Off Limits Off-limits policies on companies and people.
- Invenias knowledge base — Invenias Client Overview “Invenias Client is a premium feature that allows Invenias Users and Client Users to work collaboratively in real-time throughout the hiring process”, made available through the Executive Edition Subscription.
- Bullhorn — Staffing Software Pricing for Small Agencies Bullhorn Starter USD 99/user/month, Bullhorn Core USD 165/user/month. Invenias does not appear on this page.
- Kepler pricing USD 99 per user per month billed annually (USD 1,188 per seat per year), a single plan with every feature included, unlimited records and storage, free migration, additional AI capacity on request, full export with no exit fee.
Kepler is a recruitment CRM and this post is published by Kepler, so read it as an interested party's account. We have tried to describe Invenias as its own team would recognise it, and every factual claim is sourced above. If something here is out of date or wrong, tell us and we will correct it.