The new coding round
AI-assisted coding interview: how it works and how to prepare
Some companies, Meta and Google among them, now let you use an AI assistant in a coding interview. It sounds easier. It is not. You get a real project with several files and less time than you need to write everything by hand. The interviewer watches how you guide the assistant and whether you catch its mistakes.
The format
What the round looks like.
Candidates report about an hour in an online editor with a file list, the code and an AI chat. Details differ by company.
- Read the project
You open a small codebase you have never seen. First you find how it works and where the problem is.
- Fix or build
You fix a bug, add a feature or make something faster. You may ask the assistant for help at any point.
- Check the result
You run the code and the tests. If the assistant wrote it, you still own it.
- Explain your choices
The interviewer asks why you did it this way, what you rejected and what could still break.
What they test
What you are graded on.
- Do you understand the code before you ask for changes?
- Do you give the assistant clear, small tasks with the right context?
- Do you read what it wrote, or paste it in blind?
- Do you catch it when it is wrong, and can you say why it is wrong?
- Do you test the result?
- Can you explain every line you kept?
Common mistakes
How people fail this round.
- Asking the assistant to solve the whole thing in one message.
- Accepting a fix that hides the symptom but leaves the cause.
- Not running the code after a change.
- Going silent. The interviewer cannot grade thinking they cannot hear.
- Avoiding the assistant to look smart, then running out of time.
Practice tasks
AI-assisted tasks in Orin.
Each one is a small repo with a real problem. You work in a live editor with an AI assistant, and Orin asks about your choices as you go.
The bot that cites the wrong page
The eval nobody trusts
The chat that forgets the question
Search that answers the wrong question
The cart that stays empty
The 401 before every request
Results from the wrong search
The checkbox that will not check
The dashboard that lags on every key
The badge that never moves
The profile that never changes
The form that forgets what you typed
The feed that stutters and repeats
Comments that run code
Two orders for one click
The sync job that gets banned
Types that lie
The cache that makes it worse
How to prepare
How to get ready.
- Practice in code you did not write
Open an unfamiliar repo and give yourself ten minutes to explain how it works.
- Practice with a timer
Fix one bug with an assistant in 30 minutes. Say your plan before each prompt.
- Review everything it writes
Make it a habit: read the change, name one thing that could be wrong, then run it.
- Explain your work
After each session, tell the story in two minutes: the cause, the fix, what you checked.
Questions.
What is an AI-assisted coding interview?
A coding interview where you are allowed to use an AI assistant, usually built into the editor. You work on a real multi-file project. You are graded on how you guide the assistant, check its work and explain the result.
Which companies use AI-assisted coding interviews?
Meta and Google have started to allow an AI assistant in some coding rounds, and more companies are testing the idea. Ask your recruiter which format your loop uses.
Is it easier than a normal coding interview?
No. The task is bigger and the time is short. People fail by trusting the assistant too much or by not being able to explain the code it wrote.
Can I practice an AI-assisted round with Orin?
Yes. Orin runs AI-assisted coding rounds in a live editor with a built-in assistant. Your report grades how well you guided it and where you missed its mistakes. Your first interview is free.
Try an AI-assisted coding round.
A real repo, a live editor, an AI assistant and an interviewer who asks why. First interview free.
Start free interview