An enterprise AI agent interview should test how the engineer designs tool access, handles uncertain outcomes, and keeps the user’s intent intact. A convincing demo is only one part of the evidence.
Use a fictional workflow with synthetic records and simulated tools. The assessment should never give a candidate live credentials or authority to act on a real customer system.
Set up the fictional workflow
A fictional assistant can read support requests, draft a response, and propose an account change. Reading is permitted; changing the account requires a separate approval.
Provide simple tool descriptions, a sample request, and an external document containing irrelevant instructions. Ask the candidate to describe the system and its boundaries.
Introduce an uncertain action
A simulated tool times out after an account-change request. The response does not establish whether the action happened.
Ask what the system should do next. Look for checking state, avoiding duplicate actions, and communicating uncertainty rather than blindly retrying or reporting success.
Evaluate the design
| Dimension | Useful evidence |
|---|---|
| Intent | Distinguishes the user’s request from instructions in external content |
| Permissions | Enforces action boundaries outside the model’s prose |
| Tool design | Uses clear inputs, outputs, and failure states |
| Recovery | Handles partial or uncertain execution |
| Oversight | Gives the user meaningful review and intervention points |
| Evaluation | Tests actual outcomes as well as the conversation |
Anthropic describes human oversight and containment as complementary parts of agent design, including controls around tool access. The hiring exercise applies those broad engineering concerns to a fictional workflow. Anthropic containment discussion.
Ask for tests
Request examples covering unauthorized actions, misleading retrieved instructions, missing data, tool failures, and a successful approved workflow.
The candidate should explain how the test establishes what happened in the simulated system. A fluent final answer from the agent is not sufficient evidence that the action was correct.
Keep expectations proportional
This is a design discussion, not a request to build a complete agent platform during an interview. Give the candidate the scope and tool policy in advance.
Use the AI evaluation exercise and AI application mandate. Discuss an AI engineering hire with Refery.