At Sofar, we use AI tools in our day-to-day work, and we don't expect our hiring process to be any different. Here's how we think about it:
Applying: Write your own first draft — we want to hear your voice and understand your real experience. AI is fine for refining and polishing, not for generating your story.
Take-home assessments: Complete these on your own unless we've explicitly said otherwise. We'll always be upfront about it when AI is allowed.
Interview prep: Go for it. Use AI to research Sofar, practice your responses, and sharpen your thinking before we meet.
During interviews: This is you. We're a small team and we move fast — live conversations are how we get to know you, and we're genuinely curious how you think in real time.
A note on transparency: We're a lean People team, and we use AI to help with things like drafting job descriptions, preparing interview questions, and candidate communications. We don't use it to make hiring decisions — those are always ours.
The through line: use AI to show more of yourself, not less :)
Visa sponsorship: We do sponsor visas and retain an immigration lawyer to support the process. While we can't guarantee sponsorship for every role or situation, if we make you an offer, we'll make every reasonable effort to make it work.
A note on applying: We mean it when we say we want the strongest people — not the most credentialed ones. If you're excited about this work but don't check every box, please apply anyway. Research consistently shows that underrepresented candidates are more likely to self-select out, and that's a loss for everyone. Sofar operates at the intersection of ocean science, climate, and technology — the problems we're solving are consequential, and the perspectives we bring to them matter. We're actively working to build a team that reflects that.