Nearly half of UK job seekers face AI interviews, with many walking away
Almost half of UK job seekers have been interviewed by AI, according to research from hiring platform Greenhouse. The survey of nearly 3,000 active job seekers found that 47% of UK candidates have experienced an AI interview. Thirty percent abandoned the hiring process because of it.
The findings reflect a widening gap between what employers want and what candidates will tolerate. Job hunters describe the experience as unnatural, isolating, and sometimes degrading.
The experience: talking to a screen
Thomas, 21, a university student in northern England, applied for 15 jobs. Around 10 involved AI interviews stacked with personality assessments and skills tests. The AI interviews typically showed a pre-recorded video of someone asking a question, then gave him two minutes to plan and three minutes to answer.
"It doesn't feel real," Thomas said. "It's like you're looking into a mirror and speaking to yourself. There's no human interaction."
He found the format made it difficult to speak naturally. In face-to-face interviews later in the process, he performed better. He has since secured a job starting in September.
Susannah, 44, a scientist in Cambridge, called her AI interview "awkward and humiliating." She answered five questions in three minutes each, hitting a record button as a countdown clock ran on her screen. The questions were generic, focused on workplace behaviour and applicable to many roles.
A week later, she received a rejection with generic feedback. "I'm not even sure anybody watched the interview," she said.
One-way communication breaks down
David, 47, a marketing consultant in Spain, found the format "completely horrible for the autistic brain." During his 20-minute AI interview, he spoke in bullet points and keywords to keep pace with the countdown timer.
"The real me, who would take his time to understand the actual challenge and constraints of a project, would never deliver like that," David said. "In my line of work, there are always questions to ask before any solution can have merit. It's a two-way thing and always will be."
He was later invited to meet the chief executive, who had fed David's AI interview transcripts into ChatGPT to analyse the candidates. Despite advancing, David remains unconvinced. "AI interviews are one-way. They minimise the investment for the hiring party and maximise the strain on the potential supplier."
Tom, a project manager in Scotland, applied for a side project and approached his AI interview with less frustration than he might have felt applying for a full-time role. The AI agent conducted a conversation via his computer screen, but interrupted him repeatedly when he paused to collect his thoughts.
"When I would pause, ready to continue my answer, the AI agent had decided I'd finished, so repeatedly interrupted and moved on to the next question despite the answer not being complete," Tom said. "An interview should be a two-way thing: the potential employer interviewing you, but also I am interviewing them to see if I want the job."
Why candidates accept them
Susannah acknowledged the pressure companies face. "There are just so many applications for these jobs that an HR department would not be able to go through them all."
Yet she noted that candidates participate out of necessity. "People do the AI interviews because we are so desperate for work."
The technology remains limited. Tom summed up the consensus: "I don't think the technology is ready for a full-blown interview yet. But I think the human touch is probably a good thing, and I hope that lasts as long as possible."
For HR teams considering AI interviews, the feedback is clear. Job seekers tolerate the process but don't prefer it. Those who have alternatives often choose them. The technology works as a filter for volume, but candidates report that it screens out personality, context, and the ability to think aloud-skills that matter in most roles.
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