CB Insights Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

It was a total circus. I had 4 interviews with 5 different people and a 2-hour coding exam, all happening over two months. I spent tens of hours on this, and the end result was an automated rejection email, the kind you get before even getting a pre-screening call. Passing 4 interviews with good feedback, only to be told they aren't moving forward. Such a waste of time. This whole recruitment process felt insulting and dehumanizing.

I hate interviews. CB Insights, honestly one of the best interview processes during my recent search. Great(!) starting with recruiter contact (one of nicest dudes I've met) to final interview with co-founder. Seemed like an awesome company, but only reason for me accepting another offer was because of interesting opportunity to get in at the ground floor or a smaller company.

I applied for the software engineering job at CB Insights by emailing their careers address after seeing the role advertised on Hacker News. It started with a 30-minute screening call with one of the founders. Then, I was invited for a 4-hour interview session with several members of the engineering team. Each part of this interview involved a technical component, typically on a whiteboard, followed by time for questions. The technical questions were tough but fun, and the team was really open to questions. The following week, I had a phone call with the other founder, which was mostly behavioral, and shortly after, I received an offer. They had already requested three references. Overall, it was a really good experience, and I enjoyed the people. I ended up accepting a different offer because I wanted a larger company, but it was a tough choice. They gave me really thoughtful and detailed answers to all my questions throughout the process, and everyone seemed friendly and down-to-earth. It's a bright team!