Dating back nearly a decade, Musk has revealed his favorite interview question he likes to ask all job applicants.
“Tell me about some of the most difficult problems you worked on and how you solved them,” Musk asks.
The top interview question was revealed by Musk at the 2017 World Government Summit, as reported by the New York Post.
This interview question is meant to test if applicants are lying.
A short and vague answer is likely to indicate that the applicant is lying, while a detailed response means the person interviewing is more likely telling the truth. This is base on a study from the Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition in December 2020.
Musk may pay particular attention to the details in a person’s response, which could indicate truthfulness over lying. The answer can also give Musk or the person conducting the interview facts that can later be fact checked to see if they are telling the truth.
Those giving short answers and a lack of facts could indicate they don’t want to be fact checked later.
Known to some as the AIM method, the question allows applicants to use past examples and storytelling to provide an action, impact and method they applied.
Interaction Over Resume
In a February 2026 interview with Stripe co-founder John Collison and tech podcaster Dwarkesh Patel, Musk said he prefers personal interaction over an impressive resume when hiring top talent.
“Generally, what I tell people – I tell myself, I guess, apsirationally – is, don’t look at the resume,” Musk said.
Musk said the resume can seem impressive, but if the conversation is not equally impressive after 20 minutes, the candidate may not be right.
“Just believe your interaction.”
“I think goodness of heart is important. I underweighted that at one point.”
Musk said it’s important to see if a person is trustworthy, smart, talented and hardworking.
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