What is Audit Interview Protocol?
The Audit Interview Protocol is a hiring methodology designed for the AI era, replacing traditional coding interviews with verification-based assessments.
The Audit Interview Protocol is a hiring methodology designed for the AI era, replacing traditional coding interviews with verification-based assessments. Instead of asking candidates to write code from scratch, the protocol presents AI-generated code with intentional flaws and evaluates the candidate's ability to find, classify, and prioritize those flaws.
The protocol assesses five dimensions:
1. Bug Detection Rate: Can the candidate identify the hidden defects?
2. Severity Classification: Can they correctly rank the severity of each issue (critical, major, minor, cosmetic)?
3. Ship/No-Ship Judgment: Given the bugs found, would they ship or block the release?
4. Fix Quality: Can they propose correct, minimal fixes?
5. Communication: Can they explain technical risk to non-technical stakeholders?
Why It Matters
When AI writes the code, the most valuable engineering skill shifts from generation to verification. Traditional coding interviews test the wrong skill — they reward fast code output, which is exactly what AI now does better than humans.
Richard Ewing's articles in Built In ("When AI Writes the Code, What Are Employers Hiring For?" and "Reimagining the Coding Interview") argue that companies using traditional coding interviews are systematically hiring the wrong people for the AI era.
The free Audit Interview tool at richardewing.io/tools/audit-interview implements this protocol.
How to Measure
Measure candidate bug detection rate, severity classification accuracy, and correlation between interview scores and on-the-job performance. Companies using the protocol report 3x improvement in new hire quality.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this replace all coding interviews?
It replaces the live coding portion. System design and behavioral interviews remain valuable. The Audit Interview specifically tests the skills most relevant when AI generates the code.
What does the scoring look like?
Candidates are scored on a 0-100 scale across the five dimensions. A passing score requires demonstrating judgment, not just detection ability.
Related Terms
Need Expert Help?
Richard Ewing is a Product Economist and AI Capital Auditor. He helps companies translate technical complexity into financial clarity.
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