How to master the new AI assisted interview format - A step by step guide 

We’re sticking with the AI theme—because interviews just leveled up. If you’re not adapting, you’re falling behind. But you’re here, so you won’t be.

Big News: Canva Requires AI Use in Interviews

Canva made a bold move in the industry: AI use isn’t just allowed in their coding interviews—it’s required.  You can read the blog post here. 

No more hiding Copilot off-screen. In their new AI-Assisted Coding round, candidates complete a live product challenge using their favorite AI model. You prompt, refine, ship—and narrate every step.

They’ve scrapped textbook algorithm drills for a hands-on challenge that reflects real dev workflows. I think this is a great move. I know many devs hated the leet code style interviews. 

Why This Matters 

• 92% of devs already use AI daily. 

• Real teams don’t ban AI—so why should interviews?

Canva’s now the first major Aussie unicorn to formalize AI collaboration as a core skill. And I strongly believe that others will copy fast—across dev, product, and data roles. 

Your The Careersy Dispatch – Tip of the Week 

Treat every practice session like a paired-programming stream. 

1. Speak your prompt aloud. 
2. Explain why you’ll accept or override the AI's suggestion.
3. Log the final diff (before + after AI) in a notebook. Repeat this loop 3× a week. It builds the exact habits interviewers now care about: transparency, judgment, and iteration.

 Let's explore this a little further:

The winners in this new AI driven era aren’t the fastest typists; they’re the best AI orchestrators. A recruiter’s eye might start to look for: 

• Prompt clarity — concise, testable asks.

• Critical override — you spot hallucinations before they ship.

• Narration — You explain decisions in plain English

Playbook | 4 Steps You Can Implement This Week 

Role-Specific Drills  

Quick Wins Box :

• DM opener to a Canva engineer on Linkedin: “Hey [Name], how did you balance speed vs. accuracy in Canva’s AI-assisted round?”

• 15-Minute Drill: Build a fully functioning micro-service with AI → spend 5 minutes justifying every line.

• Prompt to Steal:  “Refactor this REST controller to handle pagination, add unit tests, and explain trade-offs in plain English.”

Results So Far

In the past 6 weeks, 3 out of 5 Careersy clients who practiced ‘AI literacy’ made it to second-round interviews, not because they blindly trusted AI, but because they showed sharp judgment, up-to-date awareness, and came prepared with real examples that impressed interviewers.

TL;DR 

Canva’s mandate is hiring 2.0: prove you and AI are a seamless team. Practice narrated prompting, audit the model’s work, and document decisions like a senior dev. It's the beginning of a massive change that will spill over to other interview rounds, industries and roles. 

Your turn: 

What’s the one AI habit you’ll add to your prep this week?

P.S. I put together something to help you level up fast:

Your AI Interview Prep Vault with over 100+ ready-to-use prompts, drills, and strategies, all in one place. You can access it via the link below 

You can access it via this → link here. ← *It's free till the end of the month (30th June 2025)