Interviewing: In-Person Returns
- A hedge-fund PM tweeted that remote interviewing is 'essentially over' as firms return to in-person formats. - He also said AI use in case studies has increased roughly tenfold in recent months, changing evaluation formats. - The trend indicates firms are testing candidates on AI-augmented problem solving alongside in-person fit assessments. (x.com)
Remote hedge-fund interviews are giving way to in-person meetings as firms try to see how candidates think without a chatbot in the room. (x.com) The catalyst was a post on X from a hedge-fund portfolio manager who said remote interviewing is “essentially over” and that AI use in case studies has risen roughly tenfold in recent months. X did not render the post text in public web preview, but the claim is the basis of the discussion now circulating across finance hiring. (x.com) The shift is not limited to hedge funds. Entrepreneur reported on August 18, 2025 that Google and McKinsey had added at least one in-person interview round, citing concerns that candidates were reading AI-generated answers during virtual interviews. (entrepreneur.com) CNBC reported on March 9, 2025 that Google was grappling with AI-assisted cheating in coding interviews, and a transcript of Sundar Pichai’s June 2025 Lex Fridman podcast appearance shows him saying Google would add “at least one round of in-person interviews” to check fundamentals. (cnbc.com, podscripts.co) In hedge funds, that matters because the interview is often the job in miniature: candidates are asked to defend an investment idea, react to new information, and explain their reasoning under time pressure. Portfolio Pint, a recruiting site used by finance candidates, says in-house hedge-fund case studies are commonly timed and completed on-site in two to three hours. (portfoliopint.com) At the same time, the industry is using more generative artificial intelligence inside firms. The Alternative Investment Management Association said in February 2024 that its survey of 157 hedge-fund managers found 86% gave staff access to generative AI tools. (aima.org) By September 2025, the same trade group said 95% of fund-manager respondents were using generative AI in their work, up from 86% in 2023, and 58% expected increased use in investment processes over the next year, up from 20% in 2023. (aima.org) That leaves firms screening for two things at once: whether a candidate can use AI as a work tool, and whether the candidate can still explain a trade, model, or recommendation face to face. The format is changing, but the test is still judgment under pressure. (x.com, aima.org)
