Afore CapitalBacked by Afore Capital

Interviewsthat reveal AI-ready engineering talent.

Puddle is an AI-native technical interview platform for hiring teams. See candidates clarify, architect, code, test, and use modern AI tools in a live, sandboxed workspace.

Book a demoSee it in action
Signal Snapshot
Interview outcome report
Session
42 min
Recommendation
Hire
AI-ready signal: strong
Confidence
92%
AI tool usage
Claude Code + Codex
31% of edits
Prompt semantic analysis
High clarity
Low drift
Focus stability
82% focused
Idle 8%
Test discipline
6 test runs
First at 7:40
Iteration pace
3 cycles
42 min total
Terminal fluency
22 commands
14 unique
Generated from live session eventsView full report →

Technical interview platform features

interview-candidate-env - zsh - 80x24
Explorer
vpuddle
vapp
config.py
main.py
routes.py
vservices
ai_copilot.py
analytics.py
sync_engine.py
vmodels
candidate.py
session.py
>tests
requirements.txt
README.md
app/main.py
1from fastapi import FastAPI
2
3from app.config import settings
4from app.routes import router
5from services.sync_engine import SyncEngine
6
7app = FastAPI(title="Puddle Interview API", version=settings.version)
8sync = SyncEngine()
9
10@app.get("/health")
11def health_check():
12 return {"status": "ok", "uptime": sync.uptime()}
13
14app.include_router(router, prefix="/v1")
Terminal
Connected

$ ~ uvicorn app.main:app --reload

INFO: Started server process [412]

INFO: Application startup complete.

Uvicorn running on http://localhost:8000

_

Feature01

Live IDE + sandboxed terminal

Run code in an isolated workspace and see file changes reflected in the interview IDE.

Live demo

Watch a real interview flow in motion

This is the exact experience candidates and panels see: the prompt, live IDE, AI guidance, and the signal trail that follows.

Watch the full demoSee interview phases
live-demo.mp4
LIVE
Live IDEAI interviewerCandidate + panel viewSignals dashboard

How Puddle technical interviews work

Interview process

  1. 1

    Problem discussion

    ~0–15 min

    Clarify requirements, constraints, and success criteria.

  2. 2

    Architecture + trade-offs

    ~15–35 min

    Sketch the system, data flow, and key decisions.

  3. 3

    Implementation

    ~35–75 min

    Build the core solution with clean structure and tests.

  4. 4

    Debrief

    ~75–90 min

    Review decisions, risks, and next-step improvements.

const run = async () => {
const res = await api.test();
console.log(res.ok);
}

Technical interview platform FAQ

Clear answers about Puddle

The short version of how Puddle works, what it measures, and where AI fits into the interview.

What is Puddle?
Puddle is an AI-native technical interview platform for hiring teams. It gives candidates a realistic workspace and gives interviewers evidence of how each candidate reasons, builds, tests, and works with AI.
How is Puddle different from a coding test?
Instead of reducing an interview to an algorithm score, Puddle follows the full engineering workflow: requirements, architecture, implementation, testing, and debrief. The result shows both what a candidate shipped and how they reached it.
Can candidates use AI coding tools?
Yes. Puddle is designed for the way engineers work now. Candidates can use modern AI tools while the interview captures signals such as prompt clarity, iteration pace, testing discipline, and decision quality.
What does Puddle evaluate?
Puddle surfaces evidence about problem solving, code quality, debugging, system design, test discipline, and AI collaboration. Hiring teams can review the signal trail behind the outcome instead of relying on a pass-or-fail result alone.
What does the candidate experience include?
Candidates work through a structured technical interview with a live browser-based IDE, sandboxed terminal, AI guidance, and clear phases for discussion, architecture, implementation, and debrief.
Who is Puddle built for?
Puddle is built for engineering leaders, hiring managers, and technical recruiting teams that want realistic, evidence-rich interviews for software engineering candidates.

Ready to transform your technical interviews?

Join our waitlist to get early access. Book a 15-minute call to see how Puddle can help you hire better engineers, faster.

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