Rippling has an interview format I hadn't seen anywhere else: an AI-assisted coding round. You're explicitly allowed to use AI tools. Here's how it works.

The format:

• 60-minute live coding round
• A real-world engineering problem (not a LeetCode puzzle)
• AI tools are permitted and expected
• The interviewer watches how you use AI, not just whether you can code

My problem: Build a corporate credit card expense policy engine.

Requirements:

• Accept transactions: merchant category, amount, date, card holder
• Apply configurable rules (e.g., "no meals > ₹2000", "no entertainment on weekdays")
• Return APPROVED / REJECTED with a reason

How I ran the round:

First 10 minutes — no code, just design:

• Defined all entities out loud: Transaction, Policy, Rule, Category
• Clarified: can one policy have multiple rules? Are rules AND or OR logic? What's the default action if no rule matches?
• Drew a rough data flow on screen

Next 25 minutes — building with AI assistance:

• Used AI to scaffold data models based on my entity spec
• Wrote the policy evaluation logic myself — the core business logic I drove
• AI handled boilerplate (constructors, getters, basic CRUD)

Final 20 minutes — edge cases and testing:

• Asked AI to generate test cases, then walked through each one to verify logic
• Added handling for: rule conflicts, null categories, transactions with no matching policy

What the round tests: Can you architect a system and make every design decision yourself, even when AI is doing the typing?