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Real API Integration with Internet Access

Forward Deployed Engineering

What it tests

Real-world engineering — not LeetCode, but actual building

Format

  1. 1Candidate gets a laptop with full internet access
  2. 2Task: integrate the product's API to solve a business scenario (e.g. checkout flow with subscriptions, usage-based billing, webhook handling)
  3. 3Can Google, read docs, use Stack Overflow — just like real work
  4. 4Must produce working, runnable code (no pseudocode)

What to look for

  • How they navigate documentation (speed, strategy)
  • Code architecture decisions under time pressure
  • Do they build the MVP first, then iterate? Or try to build perfect from the start?
  • How they handle getting stuck (ask questions vs. flail silently)

Full description

Format:

  1. Candidate gets a laptop with full internet access
  2. Task: "Integrate [your product's API] to solve [business scenario]"
    • Example (Stripe): "Build a checkout flow with subscriptions, usage-based billing, and webhook handling"
    • Example (Twilio): "Build an IVR system that routes calls based on customer data"
  3. They can Google, read docs, use Stack Overflow — just like real work
  4. Must produce working, runnable code (no pseudocode)
  5. 90 minutes

Time: 90 minutes (live, proctored)

What to look for:

  • How they navigate documentation (speed, strategy)
  • Code architecture decisions under time pressure
  • Do they build the MVP first, then iterate? Or try to build perfect from the start?
  • How they handle getting stuck (ask questions vs. flail silently)

Why it's better than LeetCode: Tests the actual skill (building with APIs) rather than a proxy skill (algorithmic puzzles). 60% of candidates who ace LeetCode fail this round at Stripe.