The Dangerous Economist: AI Is Forcing the Return of the In-Person Job Interview

More companies are returning to face-to-face meetings to counter cheating by candidates—and more ominous digital threats

By Ray A. Smith of The WSJ. Excerpts:

"Artificial intelligence has taken over so much of the job search that employers are resorting to a retro move: the in-person job interview.
Virtual interviews have become the new normal in hiring in recent years, driven by the rise of remote work and companies’ desire to speed up hiring. Trouble is, more candidates are using AI tools to cheat by feeding them answers off screen, especially in technical interviews, recruiters say. In rarer cases, AI-enabled scammers are impersonating job seekers with the aim of stealing data or money once they are hired.
Companies are responding by going old school. Cisco and McKinsey are among a growing number of companies bringing back or adding face-to-face meetings with candidates at various stages of the interview process. Google also has brought back in-person interviews for some roles this year, in part to ensure interviewees have the proper skills, for instance, in coding."
"it has become relatively easy to use AI tools off camera to write the code job candidates are being tested on"
"the share of the company’s employer-clients requesting in-person interviews has risen to 30% this year from 5% in 2024."
"Overwhelmed by the flood of applications to online job postings, employers turned to software to sort through candidates—and screen many out. Frustrated job seekers, in turn, have leaned on AI tools to craft more tailored applications and robo-apply for hundreds of jobs in just a few clicks."
"it possible to create highly realistic deepfake videos and audio. Such tools can enable a perhaps less-qualified candidate to gain an unfair edge in an interview"
"In a survey of 3,000 job seekers by research and advisory group Gartner this year, 6% said they had participated in interview fraud"