In this article
Before you start
The stages of a hiring loop are explained in the interview process.
Why interviewers ask this
Employers and recruiters adopt AI interviews to screen many candidates without scheduling a person for each one. For you, the consequence is practical: the first round may have no human in the room, and in a one-way recorded interview the usual cues, such as a nod or a follow-up question, are missing.
The question also hides a trap. "AI interview" means two different things, and preparing for the wrong one wastes time. A weak answer to "what will it be like?" says "a robot will ask me questions." A strong answer says what format to expect, what is being assessed, who reviews the output and what to rehearse. A Staff-level answer adds the legal frame: some places require notice or audits when software helps decide who advances, so you can ask what the process is.
AI interview from first principles
- Automated employment decision tool
- An automated employment decision tool is a software system that scores, ranks or recommends candidates so that it assists or replaces a human judgement about hiring; the term is used in New York City's Local Law 144.
In plain words
Think of a driving test taken on a simulator. The simulator gives you the same scenarios, times you and records what you do. A person may review the report afterwards. The analogy breaks in one place: a simulator checks measurable actions, while an interview answer is open language, so the software often summarises or scores it with less certainty than a person would.
In one precise sentence, an AI interview replaces or supplements the live interviewer with software that asks, records and often scores, while a person usually keeps the hiring decision.
The questions may be ordinary ones. In a one-way recorded interview, nobody reacts to your answer or clarifies a prompt, and the recording can be replayed. A live AI interviewer may ask follow-ups instead. Rehearse aloud for either.
Step 1: You get an invitation and a device check
The process starts with a link, not a call. An email invites you to a page where you test your camera and microphone, read the rules and accept any notice about how the recording is used. The candidate gets an invitation and a device check before any question.
Some places require you to be told in advance and to consent. The Illinois Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act, in effect since 1 January 2020, covers notice and consent when software analyses a video interview. New York City's Local Law 144 of 2021, enforced from 5 July 2023, deals with notice and bias audits for automated employment decision tools. Read the notice; it tells you what is recorded.
Step 2: Timed questions arrive one by one
AI-led interviews come in two formats. In a one-way recorded interview, prompts come with think time and an answer limit, and nobody responds. In a conversational interview, a voice or chat agent speaks, listens and asks adaptive follow-ups in real time. Research on asynchronous video interviews, such as Lukacik, Bourdage and Roulin (2022), discusses design choices like preparation time, response time and re-recording.
In the recorded format each question has a thinking time and an answer limit. The software shows or reads a prompt, starts a countdown, then records until you stop or the limit ends. Speech-to-text may transcribe the audio so the answer can be searched and scored.
A typical session is short. The worked example below is illustrative: five questions, thirty seconds of thinking and a two-minute limit per answer. That gives 150 seconds per question and 750 seconds in total, which is 12.5 minutes of clock time, and about 280 spoken words per answer at an illustrative pace of 140 words a minute.1 If the platform allows one retake, the maximum rises to 22.5 minutes.1
| Quantity (illustrative setup) | Value |
|---|---|
| Questions | 5 |
| Thinking time per question | 30 seconds |
| Answer limit per question | 120 seconds |
| Clock time per question | 150 seconds |
| Total session, no retakes | 12.5 minutes |
| Total session, one retake each | 22.5 minutes |
| Words per answer at 140 words a minute | about 280 |
Step 3: Software scores the answers and a person reviews the result
Afterwards the software scores or summarises the answers, and a person reviews the result. The output may be a transcript, a summary, a score against a rubric or a ranked list. What the score is based on differs by product and employer, so treat any claim about the exact signal as unknown unless the employer states it.
Input: recorded answers. Output: a report that a recruiter or hiring manager reads. This is why the earlier common error matters: you are writing for two readers, the software that parses the transcript and the person who skims it. Clear structure, specific facts and plain words help both.
Regulators treat these tools as consequential: Annex III, point 4(a), of the European Union (EU) Artificial Intelligence Act lists AI intended for the recruitment or selection of people, including filtering applications and evaluating candidates, among its high-risk uses. Employers who deploy such a system have duties under Article 26, including human oversight and informing the people affected. Check the date of application, because the timing of the Annex III obligations has been subject to a proposed delay. Ask the recruiter how the result is used.
Step-by-step description
- A link and a device check come first.
- Each prompt has a countdown.
- Software scores, a person reviews.
- The candidate gets an invitation and a device check before any question.
- Each question has a thinking time and an answer limit.
- Software scores the answers and a person reviews the result.
Which kind of AI interview do you have?
The phrase has two meanings. In an AI-led interview, software asks the questions. An interview for an AI role is still asked by people, and its content is machine learning and system design. If you are applying for an AI role, read AI engineer interview questions and the process pages for Anthropic and OpenAI. If the round lets you use a coding assistant, see the AI-assisted coding interview. An AI-led screen resembles an online assessment (OA) more than a conversation.
To tell which one you have, read the invitation. If it mentions a link, a camera test, timed prompts or a recording, it is an AI-led interview. If it names a person, a video call and a technical topic, it is a normal interview for an AI role. When the wording is unclear, ask the recruiter which format it is.
Text description of the diagram
- In an AI-led interview software asks the questions.
- An interview for an AI role is still asked by people.
Knowing it is half the job. Saying it is the other half.
Interview Clozo is an AI interview copilot for real interview rounds: it hears the question and puts a strong answer on your screen, and you say it in your own words. See the features or how it works.
Start Free Trial →The Staff-level answer
How would you approach an interview where software asks the questions?
First I would check the notice to learn what is recorded and who reviews it. Then I would treat each prompt as a short speech: answer in the first sentence, give one specific example with a result, and end with what I learned, all inside the time limit. I would practise out loud with a timer, because reading silently hides how long answers really run. Software parses the transcript and a person skims the report, so I keep my words plain and structured. If something is unclear, I ask the recruiter how the output is used.
What makes this Staff-level is the last two sentences: it names the two readers and the process question, not only the delivery.
The rubric
| Dimension | Weak answer | Strong answer | Staff answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Format knowledge | "A robot interviews me." | Names timed, recorded prompts. | Reads the notice, asks who reviews the report. |
| Structure | Rambles past the limit. | Answer first, then one example. | Fits the limit, ends on a result and a lesson. |
| Preparation | Reads notes silently. | Rehearses aloud with a timer. | Records, plays back and trims filler. |
| Judgement | Tries to guess the score. | Focuses on clarity. | Separates what is known from what is unknown about scoring. |
Three variants of this question
What does an AI interview look like?
In a one-way recorded interview you see a web page with a camera preview, a prompt, a countdown and a record button. In a conversational interview you see or hear an agent that speaks or types a question, waits for your reply and asks a follow-up based on what you said.
What are AI interviews like when the role is in AI?
Interviews for AI roles are usually run by people and test machine learning, coding and design. Start from the interview process and the interview skills page.
What happens after you pass an AI screen?
Later rounds after an AI screen are normally live conversations with people. Ask the recruiter for the stages so you can prepare for each.
Common mistakes
- "I will wing it because nobody is watching." (wrong) A person may review the recording. (right) "I treat it as a real round and rehearse with a timer."
- "I should keyword-stuff to please the software." (wrong) A person reads the report too, and padded answers read badly. (right) "I use the terms the job needs, in plain sentences."
- "I will read from notes on screen." (wrong) Reading shows in the recording, and some tools or rules forbid it; see whether you can look at notes during a video interview. (right) "I check the rules, then use a short outline in my head."
- "The score decides everything." (wrong) The employer's policy decides how the result is used. (right) "I ask how the output feeds the hiring decision."
Follow-up questions
Does a person or the software decide?
Whether a person or the software decides depends on the employer. Rules such as New York City's Local Law 144 exist because software can influence who advances, so ask the recruiter how the result is used.
Can you use notes in an AI interview?
Whether you can use notes in an AI interview depends on the employer and platform, so check the instructions first. Even where a short outline is allowed, reading aloud is noticeable in a recording.
How long does an AI interview take?
An AI interview takes as long as its setup dictates. In the illustrative example above, five questions take about twelve and a half minutes without retakes.
Is an AI interview the same as an online assessment?
An AI interview and an online assessment overlap. Both are often done alone on a schedule you choose, but an AI interview scores spoken or written answers, while an assessment often tests code or reasoning.
Can you retake an answer in an AI interview?
Retakes in an AI interview depend on the employer's settings: some allow one re-record per question, many allow none, and the instructions page says which.
- An AI interview is a hiring interview where software asks, records or scores, usually as timed prompts.
- Check which meaning applies: an AI-led interview, or an interview for an AI role.
- Rehearse out loud with a timer; a five-question session is short.
- Software parses the transcript and a person usually reviews the report, so be clear and specific.
- Read the notice and ask how the result is used.
Sources
- Automated Employment Decision Tools (Local Law 144 of 2021) — New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, 5 Jul 2023
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (Artificial Intelligence Act) — Publications Office of the European Union, 12 Jul 2024
- Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act (820 ILCS 42) — Illinois General Assembly, 1 Jan 2020
- Into the void: a conceptual model and research agenda for the design and use of asynchronous video interviews — Human Resource Management Review (Lukacik, Bourdage and Roulin), 1 Mar 2022
