ML Engineer Interview Experience - Santa Clara, California
June 21, 2022
Neutral ExperienceGot Offer
Process
Too many rounds of interviews. First, an online screening, then two rounds of 1-hour interviews (including with the CTO), and a final round with 4 engineers and the hiring manager.
For the most part, they were friendly, but one of the engineers had an attitude. Each round was about 2 weeks apart.
Questions
For the most part, they were basic probability and coding. After reading other reviews, I seem to think they're recycling the interview problems:
- Basic high-school probability and number puzzles.
- The CTO wanted to implement a linked list and reverse it (extra credit for in-place reversal in a single pass).
- One of the engineers tried to prove he was smarter than you by providing very sparse details on his problems. It was also a bit annoying when he didn't acknowledge any correct answers and simply wanted to move on to the next problem.
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Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 1 interview experience for the SoundHound ML Engineer role in Santa Clara, California.
Success Rate
100%
Pass Rate
SoundHound's interview process for their ML Engineer roles in Santa Clara, California is incredibly easy as the vast majority of engineers get an offer after going through it.
Experience Rating
Positive0%
Neutral100%
Negative0%
Candidates reported having mixed feelings for SoundHound's ML Engineer interview process in Santa Clara, California.
SoundHound Work Experiences
1.0
Can't wait to leave
ML Engineer • Current Employee
June 17, 2022
Pros: - Interesting/promising technology
- A few caring teammates.
- Free lunch allowance when in office.
Cons: It's been a nightmare since the start. The org is super flat which means that my manager was too busy to meet let alone clearly explain what I should be working on. There is too much red tape surrounding the OKR and Jira systems to manage tasks and the program managers seem to love it. It's a drain on productivity in my opinion.
A few teammates (esp the new hires) are helpful but a few old-timers are so full of themselves. Work-life balance is nonexistent. Since the company went public, it's only gotten worse. The stock has been tanking. Starting now, we need to report the number of hours worked on each project (adding up to <= 40 hours) into a public spreadsheet so that they can know that "no team member is overloaded". I am guessing clocking in and out will be next.
Free food is the only nice thing. The other benefits are pretty standard: no 401-K matching, no bonuses and the base pay is lower than other tech companies.
Culture: probably too "open" for my taste, having to notify everyone whether you'll still be on slack when on PTO or that you can't work this week because you have covid.
3.0
Great engineers not much else
Software Engineer II • Current Employee
Toronto, ON
September 18, 2025
Pros: Incredibly smart and friendly engineers that are a real pleasure to work with.
Cons: Constant pivots. Questionable decisions. Acquisitions that make little sense. No culture. No fun. Limited growth opportunities
5.0
Good company
Cognitive Technical Lead • Current Employee
Bengaluru
July 29, 2025
Pros: Good company to work in
Cons: No cons for now in this company
- 1.0Can't wait to leaveML Engineer • Current EmployeeJune 17, 2022Pros: - Interesting/promising technology - A few caring teammates. - Free lunch allowance when in office.Cons: It's been a nightmare since the start. The org is super flat which means that my manager was too busy to meet let alone clearly explain what I should be working on. There is too much red tape surrounding the OKR and Jira systems to manage tasks and the program managers seem to love it. It's a drain on productivity in my opinion. A few teammates (esp the new hires) are helpful but a few old-timers are so full of themselves. Work-life balance is nonexistent. Since the company went public, it's only gotten worse. The stock has been tanking. Starting now, we need to report the number of hours worked on each project (adding up to <= 40 hours) into a public spreadsheet so that they can know that "no team member is overloaded". I am guessing clocking in and out will be next. Free food is the only nice thing. The other benefits are pretty standard: no 401-K matching, no bonuses and the base pay is lower than other tech companies. Culture: probably too "open" for my taste, having to notify everyone whether you'll still be on slack when on PTO or that you can't work this week because you have covid.
- 3.0Great engineers not much elseSoftware Engineer II • Current EmployeeToronto, ONSeptember 18, 2025Pros: Incredibly smart and friendly engineers that are a real pleasure to work with.Cons: Constant pivots. Questionable decisions. Acquisitions that make little sense. No culture. No fun. Limited growth opportunities
- 5.0Good companyCognitive Technical Lead • Current EmployeeBengaluruJuly 29, 2025Pros: Good company to work inCons: No cons for now in this company
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