A Delhi-based tech professional with more than a decade of experience has triggered a widespread debate after revealing that he has failed to land even a single interview since being laid off two months ago.
The candid post about sending out applications daily with little to no response has struck a nerve among professionals across the industry, many of whom say the tech job market has become far tougher amid AI-led hiring systems and rising competition for senior roles.
Devendra Pratap Singh, a software engineer with more than 11 years of experience, shared his concerns on Reddit, saying the silence from recruiters has been unlike anything he has encountered in his career so far. Singh’s résumé includes stints at companies such as BookMyShow, Zynga Gaming, FanCraze, and Spinny.
According to Singh, his current experience is drastically different from what he saw during his previous job switch just a few months ago.
“Usually, calls always come, but I was laid off two months ago, and it’s been total silence,” Singh wrote on Reddit. “I’m applying every day, but I’m hardly getting any response from HRs.”
He added that only seven to eight months earlier, recruiters had been reaching out frequently. “That time I was constantly getting HR calls, weekly two-three interviews and I had two offers in hand,” he said, underlining how sharply the market appears to have shifted in a short span of time.
Singh also suggested that the growing use of artificial intelligence in recruitment may be contributing to the slowdown. He expressed concern that automated filtering systems are making it harder for candidates to even reach the interview stage.
“It’s something I’ve never seen before… it’s a bit scary to see the market like this after so many years,” he wrote.
Rather than remaining inactive during the job search, Singh said he has started conducting paid mock interviews focused on coding and system design. He noted that he offers flexible pricing and is even willing to help some candidates free of cost if they cannot afford to pay.