Uber is using in-app games to recruit engineers while they take a ride.
Business Insider first reported about the company’s new game, “Code on the Road,” after Microsoft engineer Joshua Debner tweeted a couple screenshots he noticed on the Uber app last week.
Uber is now offering coding questions to potential candidates while you're in an uber. How did they know I code? pic.twitter.com/W2zn8bmouy
— Joshua Debner (@jdebner) March 25, 2016
Uber confirmed with Business Insider that it is indeed using the game to recruit engineers in cities with many techies, like Seattle, Austin, Boston, and others. The company said it isn’t using personal information to target potential new employees, but rather just pushing out the game in cities where it’s more likely a user has an engineering background.
Uber gave me a "HACKER CHALLENGE" while in the car today. Apparently "HACKER" means "can implement quicksort". pic.twitter.com/zZVkfkNub4
— John Feminella (@jxxf) March 12, 2016
The game itself isn’t all that complicated, with three coding problems to solve. Uber then sends an email to those that complete the test with a link to apply for a job.
Other tech giants like Google have used similar “secret” strategies to recruit employees.
