Palantir · Software engineer · Software Engineer / FDE (all levels)
Recruiter Screen
Warm and conversational
What they actually ask
The question shapes this round uses. Larpy does not read these out. It builds each one from your own resume, because the generic version is the one you have already rehearsed.
- “Walk me through your background and what you're working on now.”
- “Why Palantir, and why this mission specifically?”
- “What are you looking for in your next role, and why now?”
- “SWE or FDE, what draws you to that track?”
- “How do you feel about working on government and defense problems?”
What this round is judged on
- Motivation · genuine interest in Palantir's mission and products
- Communication · clear, concise storytelling about your background
- Role fit · alignment of experience with SWE vs FDE and level
- Signal of substance · specifics over rehearsed platitudes
Where this round sits
Palantir’s published process. Lime marks the stage this round runs.
- 01Recruiter screenthis round
- 02Technical phone screen
- 03Final loop (virtual onsite)
- 04Debrief / hiring committee
What happens in each stage›
- Recruiter screen
- ~30 min phone call on background, motivation, why Palantir, and role/level fit. Non-technical gate on genuine interest and communication.
- Technical phone screen
- ~45-60 min live coding in a shared editor (CoderPad/HackerRank CodePair). One algorithmic problem, sometimes a scaled-down decomposition task. Emphasis on working, readable code and verbal reasoning.
- Final loop (virtual onsite)
- Typically 3-4 rounds: 1-2 technical coding rounds including the signature decomposition round, a behavioral/values round, and for FDE an added customer-scenario / product-sense round.
- Debrief / hiring committee
- Interviewers write up feedback; a committee makes the final decision.
Sources
Built from what Palantir publishes about its own process and from real interview data. No leaked question lists. The questions you get are generated against your own resume, so they are not from anyone else's interview.
- datalevels.fyi, Palantir Software Engineer compensation & job families (incl. Forward Deployed Engineer)levels.fyi
Engineering job families (Backend SWE, Full-Stack SWE, FDE) and total compensation range ($145K-$436K, median ~$223K, SWE avg ~$250K).
Palantir's own description of its interview stages and expectations. URL confirmed live but Medium global-identity wall returns 404 to automated fetchers; human-readable.
Company mission framing, engineering roles, and candidate-facing hiring information. JS-only; renders empty to the fetcher, human-readable.
Sources last checked . Hiring loops change, so this date is the honest limit on everything above.