In-person interviews make a comeback amid growing AI use in interviews and risks of deepfakes
Google is opting for in-person interviews for hiring employees as jobseekers use artificial intelligence tools to help answer questions and complete tests.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai revealed the change during the Lex Fridman Podcast in June, when he was asked about how AI has changed interviews for engineers.
"We'll introduce at least one round of in-person interviews for people just to make sure the fundamentals are there," Pichai told the podcast. "I think they'll end up being important."
Google adds to the expanding list of organisations that are adopting a retro approach to hiring as more jobseekers rely on AI during recruitment.
Findings from Capterra last year found that 40% of jobseekers are writing or refining their résumé using AI. More than a quarter (28%) also confessed that they are using AI to generate interview answers.
In the United States, findings from anonymous community application Blind this year found that 20% of employees are using AI during job interviews, with 55% agreeing this was the new norm.
There is AI-powered assistant called Interview Coder circulating that is designed to "help job seekers ace technical interviews by providing real-time assistance with coding questions."
Pichai said in a town hall in February that it was "worth thinking" about getting some of the company's interviews in person.
"I think it'll help both the candidates understand Google's culture and I think it's good for both sides," the CEO said as quoted by CNBC.
But the reinstatement of in-person interviews across organisations is not just about jobseekers using AI to assist them in interviews.
There have also been cases of AI-generated deep fake personas meant to fool hiring managers into hiring fraudsters so they can infiltrate organisations.
Gartner previously warned that one in four job candidates globally will be fake by 2028, thanks to generative AI making deepfakes "increasingly sophisticated and adaptable."
In one case, Vidoc Security co-founder Dawid Moczadlo shared on LinkedIn that a job candidate he recently interviewed was using AI to alter his appearance during a technical interview.
The interviewee was also using ChatGPT to answer the interview questions.
"Either you change the hiring process now, or you'll learn the hard way," Moczadlo later warned employers. "It's creepy and sad, but we have to adapt; there's no other option. You need to act now!"
