Unemployed 26-year-old data engineer uses AI to solve 633 Leetcode problems in 24 hours
Leetcode is a popular means of evaluating coding aptitude in multiple industries, including big tech and banking, but it has its limits. Engineers who've made Leetcode mastery their entire personality might be in for a rude awakening in the near future. An unemployed former data consultant has figured out how to solve Leetcode problems at breakneck pace.
Click here to follow our new WhatsApp channel, and get instant news updates straight to your phone 📱
Tim Shelton, former data analyst at Pomerol Partners, went viral on the r/Leetcode subreddit yesterday with an autonomous system for solving Leetcode challenges using Claude's 3.5 Sonnet API and Python. His system had an 86% success rate, and was used to solve 217 easy, 359 medium and 57 hard problems in 24 hours.
Shelton's motivation for the project was twofold. He wanted to demonstrate "how dumb and arbitrary it is to solve a ton of Leetcode problems," and to show it's "a joke if someone thinks their # of problems solved is any measure of value."
He also wanted something to talk about in interviews. Shelton said in a separate post two weeks ago that he was looking for work after leaving his data role at a consultancy for family reasons in April. The project was specifically "because I need a python project to talk about during interviews, and wanted to practice."
Despite creating an AI system that negates popular coding tests used to hire software developers, Shelton has never worked in engineering or software development specifically. He was a data analyst and then a consultant... and was a business administration graduate to boot. He has been looking for a role in data or software engineering, and evidently found the application process lacking.
If Leetcode-type tests are no good for differentiating between job applicants, how will companies choose people in the future? Shelton anticipates that personalized take home projects will become more popular as AI phases Leetcode out, but these have their own problems and benefits. Candidates lament the fact that these take home projects can take an entire weekend to do. However, they can also filter out a lot of candidates who can't be bothered to do them, thus improving your chances of a successful application.
Have a confidential story, tip, or comment you’d like to share? Contact: Telegram: @AlexMcMurray, WhatsApp: (+1 269 237 3950). Click here to fill in our anonymous form, or email editortips@efinancialcareers.com. Signal also available.
Bear with us if you leave a comment at the bottom of this article: all our comments are moderated by human beings. Sometimes these humans might be asleep, or away from their desks, so it may take a while for your comment to appear. Eventually it will – unless it’s offensive or libelous (in which case it won’t.)
