McKinsey Makes AI Use Mandatory in Job Interviews, Signals New Hiring Standard

McKinsey & Company has sent a clear message to job aspirants: comfort with artificial intelligence is no longer optional. The global consulting giant has begun making the use of its internal AI tool mandatory in select final-round interviews, particularly for graduate-level roles in the United States. Candidates who are unable to effectively work with the AI system risk being ruled out of the hiring process altogether.

According to reports from interview preparation firm CaseBasix, McKinsey has introduced what is being described as an “AI interview” as part of its final-stage assessments. In this round, candidates are required to complete real-world consulting-style tasks using McKinsey’s proprietary AI assistant, Lilli. The goal is not to test technical expertise in artificial intelligence, but to evaluate how well applicants can collaborate with AI to solve business problems.

During the interview, candidates are presented with a business scenario similar to those faced by consultants in client engagements. Rather than relying solely on independent analysis, applicants are encouraged to use Lilli to gather insights, structure their thinking, and refine their responses. Interviewers assess how candidates prompt the AI, evaluate its output, and apply human judgment to reach a clear and well-reasoned conclusion.

CaseBasix explained that the focus of the AI interview is on reasoning, decision-making, and structured communication. Candidates are not expected to understand how AI models are built or to be experts in prompt engineering. Instead, they must demonstrate that they can use AI as a productive thinking partner — much like working with a junior team member — and clearly explain how they arrived at their final recommendations.

Early feedback suggests that struggling to use the AI tool effectively can significantly impact a candidate’s chances of being hired. While the AI interview does not replace McKinsey’s traditional evaluation rounds, it now runs alongside them. These include one round focused on structured problem-solving and another assessing leadership qualities, personal impact, and alignment with the firm’s values.

The introduction of AI into the hiring process reflects how deeply artificial intelligence has become embedded in McKinsey’s operations. The new interview format was first reported by the Financial Times, though McKinsey has not issued an official public statement on the change.

What is clear, however, is the firm’s growing reliance on AI internally. McKinsey CEO Bob Sternfels has said the company now works with tens of thousands of AI agents alongside its human workforce. Speaking on the Harvard Business Review IdeaCast and later at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Sternfels revealed that McKinsey employs around 60,000 people and approximately 25,000 AI agents — meaning more than one-third of its workforce is now powered by artificial intelligence.

He also highlighted the pace of this transformation. Less than two years ago, McKinsey was using only a few thousand AI agents. The firm now expects that within the next 18 months, every employee will be working with at least one AI agent as part of their daily responsibilities.

For job seekers, the message is unmistakable. At McKinsey, the ability to work alongside AI is no longer a differentiator — it is fast becoming a baseline requirement for entry into one of the world’s most influential consulting firms.