Double Standards in Hiring: Why Tech Giants Ban Job‑Seeking AI While Using It Themselves

Double Standards in Hiring: Why Tech Giants Ban Job‑Seeking AI While Using It Themselves

Introduction

There’s growing concern over a double standard: many leading tech firms forbid applicants from using AI tools during recruitment, even while these same companies harness advanced AI internally - and to screen candidates.

 

1. Goldman Sachs: AI‑free interviews, AI‑powered hiring

Goldman Sachs has explicitly told campus applicants they must not use ChatGPT, Google, or any external AI assistance during interviews. Yet internally, the bank is a major proponent of AI: it uses its own assistant for tasks like translating code and summarising emails and also outsources candidate screening to HireVue - an AI filtering system.

 

2. Anthropic: The creators of Claude say “no AI allowed”

Even AI developers are enforcing similar bans. Anthropic, whose Claude chatbot competes with ChatGPT, has told applicants that genuine, unmediated interest is essential - and no AI-generated cover letters or responses are permitted.

 

3. Amazon: AI for efficiency, but none for candidates

Amazon has also taken a hard stance: recruiters have been instructed to disqualify candidates if they’re caught using generative AI during interviews. But internally, Amazon heavily invests in AI tools to accelerate business workflows.

 

4. The AI arms‑race in recruitment

• Generative AI has flooded the job market. LinkedIn saw a 45% rise in submissions - about 11,000 per minute - as AI‑crafted CVs dominate.

• Many applicants now use AI to generate large volumes of resumes and cover letters, while employers deploy AI‑driven screening tools to sift through them .

• This imbalance creates a bot‑v‑bot arms race, risking human nuance and authenticity in hiring.

 

5. Why the contradiction matters

• Control vs. Convenience: Applicants must avoid AI to demonstrate authenticity, while companies feel free to integrate AI wherever it suits them.

• Fairness Debate: This policy suggests the emphasis isn't on fairness or skill, but on who controls the narrative. A candidate’s voice must be unfiltered - but the company’s process can be entirely automated.

 

6. What this means for candidates

• Reliability of AI‑assisted applications is no longer up for debate - but using AI may backfire if it violates a company’s rules, even as others openly embrace it.

• The ongoing tech standoff means applicants must navigate a rugged path: leverage AI for efficiency, but ensure you remain within each organisation’s guidelines.

 

Conclusion

The recruitment landscape is changing fast, driven by AI’s capacity to both assist and confuse. While job seekers turn to bots for efficiency, large companies are enforcing bans - even as they capitalise on AI internally. The core question emerges: will hiring ever return to being about people, not just algorithms?

 

 

This blog post is reworked from the original article “Double standard much? Tech giants ban AI for job seekers, while super bots judge you” by Ion Axinescu in Euro Weekly News (15 Jun 2025).