For the last 10 years, the “Technical Interview” was a standardized ritual:
- Walk in.
- Stand at a whiteboard.
- Invert a Binary Tree.
- Go home.
But in 2026, a $20 subscription to ChatGPT can invert a binary tree in 3 seconds. Because of this, companies are changing how they interview. They aren’t testing for Syntax anymore (the robot does that). They are testing for System Thinking (only humans do that).
If you are prepping for a tech role, here is the new playbook.
1. Expect “Code Review” instead of “Code Writing”
Instead of asking you to write a function from scratch, interviewers might give you a block of AI-generated code that has a subtle bug or security flaw.
- The Prompt: “This code works, but it scales poorly. Tell me why, and fix it.”
- The Skill: Debugging and Optimization. You need to understand complexity (Big O notation) more than ever, because AI writes inefficient code all the time.
2. The Rise of the “System Design” Interview
This used to be reserved for Senior Architects. Now, it’s hitting Juniors.
- The Question: “Design a URL shortener like Bitly.”
- What they want: They don’t want the code. They want the Architecture.
- Which database do you choose? (SQL vs NoSQL?)
- How do you handle 1 million concurrent users? (Load balancing?)
- How do you handle latency? (Caching?) Anutio Tip: Study “Distributed Systems” concepts. This is where the money is.
3. “Explain It Like I’m Five” (Communication)
The interviewer might ask: “Explain how an API works to my grandmother.” Why? Because Soft Skills are the new Hard Skills. They want to know if you can work with the Marketing team or the Product team without confusing them with jargon.
4. Be Honest About AI
If they allow you to use an IDE or internet during the test, ask: “Do you mind if I use Copilot to generate the boilerplate code so I can focus on the business logic?”
- Green Flag: Many modern CTOs will love this. It shows efficiency.
- Red Flag: If you use it to solve the logic problem for you, you fail. Use AI as a Tool, not a Crutch. (See: Should You List ChatGPT on Your Resume?).
