Taiwanese engineer Denny Ku earlier this week released a new Internet tool known as Clairvoyance that promises to have a major impact on how people look for employment online. Ku, who lives in Taipei, says he was motivated to create the software after noticing that job seekers were often asking for other people’s input on the PTT bulletin board, a popular online forum in Taiwan. He sensed it would be more convenient if people could write and view comments on the job posts directly rather than elsewhere.

Ku says most Taiwanese search for jobs via free websites like 104 and 1111, which charge companies for posting job vacancies. As a result, websites tend to reveal more information about applicants to the employers, rather than providing more information about positions to the job seekers.

TonyQ Wang (王景弘), a well known Taiwanese software developer and a former member of ZK Professionals, says that websites are more focused on pleasing advertisers than job seekers. As a result, job matching is often inaccurate.

Although most Taiwanese rely on job search websites to find new jobs, Ku doubts the websites would be willing to add a chat functionality for users. He decided to find a way to fill the information gap.

"People might think I'm too young, too naive, to try to influence the employment market. However, how will you know if you don’t try?" he says.

Ku has since released the source code of Clairvoyance on Github, opening up the software for advice and suggestions from other netizens. He says he plans to open a fanpage for Clairvoyance and to post popular job openings on a daily basis.

Another netizen has already volunteered to develop a version for Firefox.