The engineering interview process is broken, AI cheating is exposing it faster
I've been thinking a lot about how technical interviews have hardly evolved in the last decade, and how AI is accelerating their collapse.
We're still using Leetcode-style problems that barely reflect the actual work engineers do. Candidates are expected to grind 50+ algorithm questions just to get a shot—even if the job has nothing to do with algorithms. Now, AI tools are being used to pass take-home assignments, do live coding rounds, or even write resumes that bypass ATS filters.
And the thing is, it's not even cheating in the traditional sense—it's just people using the tools available to them. The problem is deeper: we’re assessing the wrong things in the first place. Should we care if someone uses AI to solve a take-home if they’ll use AI on the job anyway? Should we really be judging an engineer’s ability based on whether they remember how to reverse a linked list under pressure?
We’re stuck in a system that’s easy to game and hard to justify. Has anyone seen companies doing this better? How are you adjusting your hiring process in the age of AI?
In person interview. Solving real problem. Ideally, one I met recently.