OpenAI | Software Engineer | Interview Experience
Interview Date: Not specified
Result: Fail
Difficulty: Hardest
Interview Process
The interview consisted of a technical phone screen. The candidate was asked to solve a coding problem related to a message passing system, specifically focusing on a tree structure. The interviewer provided a scenario where the board size was not specified but could be imagined as a medium size of 50x50. The task involved filling 100 word slots with a dictionary of 1 million words, requiring the candidate to find any valid combination.
During the interview, the candidate initially proved that a single machine approach was insufficient and then proposed a multi-machine version using stochastic optimization. The discussion focused on explaining the end-to-end process without delving into deeper technical details. The interviewer expressed interest in the proposed method, stating it was the first time encountering such an approach, and mentioned they would verify it later.
Technical Questions
- Message Passing System (Graph, Depth-First Search, Tree, Message Passing)
- Crossword Puzzle (Combinatorial, Search Algorithm, Optimization Techniques, Distributed Computing)
Tips & Insights
The candidate noted that the most effective solution for the problem was a distributed depth-first search (DFS). However, the interviewer had not seen this solution before and did not expect candidates to provide it. Most candidates tended to use simulation methods, dividing tasks and branching out when encountering dead ends.