How to Use AI During an Interview: What Reddit Won't Tell You

The honest answer: you can only use AI during an interview when the employer has told you it is allowed, and at most big employers it isn’t. Covertly running ChatGPT or a “live answer” tool in a hidden window, the approach Reddit threads keep debating, can get you disqualified at companies like Amazon. Where AI does pay off is before the interview, and in the growing number of rounds where it’s built in on purpose.

This guide covers what the policies actually say as of October 2026, how to find out which rules apply to you, and how to get real value from AI without risking the offer.

Why this question keeps coming up

Remote interviews made it tempting to keep an AI assistant open off-camera, and a wave of tools marketed as interview helpers made it easy. CNBC reported in March 2025 on a student who built one such tool aimed at coding interviews, and experts quoted in that piece said these tools had become hard to detect.

Employers responded. According to the same CNBC report, Sundar Pichai suggested at a February 2025 Google town hall that “some fraction of the interviews” be held in person. Other companies wrote explicit AI rules for candidates. So the real question isn’t “how do I sneak AI in?” It’s “what does this company allow, in this round?”

What major employers say

Policies differ a lot, and some are reported second-hand, so treat this as a snapshot rather than a rulebook. Always confirm with your recruiter.

Amazon

Amazon’s guidelines reportedly say applicants can be disqualified if they’re found using an AI tool during interviews, and they specifically call out tools that feed real-time prompts as an “unfair advantage.” The coverage also lists what recruiters are told to look for: typing while a question is asked, reading rather than responding naturally, and eyes wandering. Some 2026 blog posts claim harsher penalties, but we couldn’t confirm those against reputable reporting.

Anthropic

Anthropic’s candidate guidance is the clearest official example of a staged policy:

• Application: write your own first draft, then use Claude to refine it. The experience you describe must be real.
• Take-home assessments: complete them without Claude unless told otherwise.
• Interview prep: using Claude to research the company, practice answers and prepare questions is encouraged.
• Live interviews: no AI assistance unless they indicate otherwise.

Third-party interview-prep blogs disagree about whether some Anthropic coding rounds allow AI. That’s exactly the “unless we indicate otherwise” case, so ask rather than assume.

Meta

Meta is the best-known example going the other way. In July 2025, 404 Media reported internal messages saying some coding candidates would get an AI assistant, and that the format makes LLM-based cheating less effective. A Meta spokesperson said the company was “testing how to provide these tools to applicants during interviews.” We haven’t found an official public update on how widely it rolled out, so details may have changed.

Goldman Sachs

Goldman’s campus recruiting team told applicants it prohibits any external sources, including ChatGPT or Google search, during the interview process, according to Fortune. Fortune also noted its recorded video interviews give about 30 seconds of prep and two minutes to answer, which leaves little room to consult a chatbot anyway.

How to find out what’s allowed in your interview

1. Re-read every email and portal page. Rules often show up in scheduling emails, assessment instructions or an acknowledgment checkbox you clicked through.
2. Ask your recruiter directly, round by round. Something like: “Is AI assistance permitted in the technical round or the take-home? If so, which tools?” Recruiters field this question all the time now.
3. Get clarity on “allowed” versus “expected.” If AI is permitted, ask whether you’ll be judged on how you use it, and whether the tool is provided in the interview environment or you bring your own.
4. Assume no if you hear nothing. At the employers above, the default for live rounds is no AI.
5. Request accommodations through official channels. If you rely on assistive technology, raise it early. Don’t quietly run tools and hope nobody notices.

If AI is allowed in the round

When an employer builds AI into the interview, they’re usually assessing how you work with it, not whether it can produce an answer. Practical habits:

• Think out loud before you prompt. Explain the approach you want, then use the assistant to speed it up.
• Verify everything. Read generated code or text, test it, and say what you’re checking. Catching an AI mistake is a strong signal.
• Keep prompts specific. Clear constraints and context show you understand the problem.
• Stay in control. If the assistant goes down a bad path, say so and redirect it rather than accepting its output.

The legitimate way to use AI: preparation

This is where AI tools actually earn their keep, and every policy we reviewed allows it in some form.

1. Research the company. Have a chatbot summarize the company’s products, recent news and stated values, then check the important facts against the company’s own site. Goldman, for example, tells candidates to study its financial results, business principles and core values.
2. Run mock interviews. Paste in the job description and ask the assistant to play the interviewer, one question at a time, with follow-ups.
3. Tighten your stories. Draft your own answers to behavioral questions first, then ask AI for feedback on structure and length. Keep the facts yours; Anthropic’s guidance says the experience you describe should be your real experience.
4. Practice technical problems without help first. Use AI afterwards to review your solution, explain alternatives, or generate similar practice problems.
5. Prepare questions for the interviewer. AI is good at turning your research into thoughtful questions about the team and role.

The bottom line

Reddit threads tend to frame this as “can you get away with it?” A better question is whether the risk is worth it. At employers like Amazon, Anthropic and Goldman Sachs, unauthorized AI in a live interview breaks stated rules, and some companies have moved rounds back in person to stop it. Use AI heavily to prepare, use it openly when the interviewer invites you to, and ask when you’re not sure. Policies are changing quickly, so check the current rules for your specific application rather than relying on a thread from last year.