Technology
How micro1’s AI interviewer could make tech hiring more efficient and fair
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Micro1, a startup applying artificial intelligence to recruiting that we covered last year, announced the launch of an AI-powered technical interviewer that should help companies efficiently screen software engineering candidates at scale. The tool generates customized questions based on candidates’ self-reported skills, conducts voice-based technical interviews and coding assessments, and produces detailed evaluation reports.
In an exclusive interview with VentureBeat, founder and CEO of micro1 Ali Ansar explained that the product addresses a key pain point in technology hiring. “Usually when you post a vacancy, especially at Global [reach]you get a lot of applications,” Ansari said. “Employers usually choose a random sample size from those applications and interview them. The decision of which people to interview is very arbitrary.”
Customized questions and real-time assessment reports
Micro1’s AI interviewer aims to solve this by allowing companies to consistently assess a much larger portion of applicants. Candidates enter their top skills and seniority level for each, such as “senior” for React. The system then dynamically generates questions that test relevant theoretical and practical knowledge.
Ansari emphasized the focus on customization and generating real-time content. “The questions we ask are based on [the skills input]so if anyone puts in Reply And Node.js As their top skills, we are going to ask them theoretical programming questions about React and Node.js,” he explained. “There is no static database of questions. We generate questions in real time using a language model, so new questions arise every time.”
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After completing a voice-based Q&A and live coding, candidates will receive an automatically generated assessment report assessing performance in each skill area. This report helps recruiters prioritize top performers so they can advance to human interviews. Micro1 reports that this screening has increased the success rate for human interviews to approximately 50%, compared to a typical 10-15%.
Addressing AI biases and candidate experience
The young company is well aware of industry concerns around AI bias. While Ansari acknowledged that some bias is inevitable, he highlighted several steps taken to reduce unfairness. Questions are refined based on human interviews, and “the AI interviewer cannot say this candidate passed or failed, that doesn’t exist.” Recruiters should consider AI assessment holistically alongside other data points such as resumes.
Reactions from early candidates were largely positive, with Ansari estimating 80-90% highly favorable feedback. “A lot of [responses are] like ‘wow, this was actually really fun, I was less nervous, I could articulate my thoughts better,’” he said. Over time, the company wants to make the AI experience “equal” or “even better” than human interviews.
Stand out in a growing AI recruitment market
Micro1 is part of a growing wave of startups building AI tools for recruiting. Competitors love Filtered And Carat also offer automated technical reviews. But micro1 stands out for its dynamic interviews and the goal of “giv[ing] qualified candidates have a better chance by allowing them to actually transfer their skills,” said Ansari.
While companies are struggling to fill almost 400,000 open computer jobs In the US alone, hiring optimization tools are in high demand. micro1 has already signed a number of early customers, mainly mid-market technology companies that are acutely feeling the talent shortage. But Ansari is optimistic about expanding to additional functions and company sizes in the long term.
The product’s launch comes amid fierce debate over the appropriate use of AI in high-stakes areas such as hiring. Opponents argue that current AI systems are too unreliable and biased to make fair, consistent judgments about people. Advocates counter that AI, if used carefully, can help reduce human biases and missed opportunities on a large scale.
Ansari and the micro1 team firmly believe that, with responsible implementation aimed at augmenting human decision-making rather than replacing it, AI interviewers can make hiring both more efficient and fairer. “The goal in this use case is to reduce the bias in these AI systems compared to humans,” says Ansari. Time will tell whether micro1 can realize that ambitious vision.
