Updated on October 8, 2025

Making first impressions fair: AI video interviews as an opportunity multiplier

3min

We’ve been in the screening game long enough to know how hard it is to get that initial screen right. With hundreds of applicants on the table, how can you know who’s worth your time? How can you discern who’s inflated their resume and who’s underselling themself, a hidden gem waiting to be found?

There are other questions too, of course. "How do we get through this pile of applications faster? I’ve already done ten screening calls this week. Do I really need to do another one?"

For too long these questions have been in tension with one another – because it’s really hard to collect accurate, meaningful hiring signals quickly without compromising on quality, or inviting bias into the process.

So today I’m presenting you with a new question.

"How can we have a meaningful, structured screening calls with every applicant?"

And I’ve got the answer, too. It lies in thoughtfully designed AI video interviews. Not as a replacement for human judgment, but as an opportunity multiplier that happens right at the start of the hiring process.

We’ve just launched our AI video interview feature. I’m so excited about this one, and I’m here to tell you about our thinking behind it – and explain why we believe it’s the opportunity multiplier candidates and hiring teams need. Let’s dive in.

The status quo = inequity

That tension between speed, quality, and fairness has real-world consequences. To cope with volume, teams rely on screening calls of 15 minutes or less. We see it as the "human touch," but, in reality, it's one of the most inconsistent and biased stages of hiring. And on top of that, it excludes the majority of candidates – only a minority will be invited to a screening call.

In the call itself, one recruiter might ask about a candidate's previous role, while another might present a hypothetical problem. One candidate catches the recruiter on a good day; another catches them right before lunch. Logo and tenure bias abound, and affinity bias kicks in. The result is an apples-to-oranges comparison that’s more to do with gut-feel than anything else.

This is where hidden gems get lost. A brilliant developer who is nervous on the phone or a talented marketer from a non-traditional background might not "click" in a short, unstructured chat.

They're screened out before you get to see their real potential.

For the AI skeptics

Now, I know what many of you are thinking. The answer is AI interviews? Does the solution really involve removing the very humanity we’re trying to find?

Let’s be clear: we share those concerns. You’re right to be skeptical of black-box AI that makes decisions without explanation, potentially amplifying the very biases we want to eliminate. An algorithm that has been trained on decades of biased hiring data will only learn to automate that bias at scale. That’s not progress; it’s just faster discrimination.

Our philosophy with AI interviews accounts for that. We believe the purpose of using AI in screening isn’t to make the decision for you. It’s to provide you with fair, structured, and transparent insights so that you can make better ones. Here’s some more info on that.

Related content: Why 78% of candidates now prefer AI interviews

Science, not sorcery

Our interview questions and scoring rubrics are meticulously crafted by our team of PhDs in psychometrics and industrial-organizational psychology. Each question is designed to assess job-relevant skills and validated behavioral competencies, ensuring that the insights you receive are genuinely related to skills and on-the-job performance.

On top of this, our AI video interview scoring tool has been thoroughly tried and tested, and has been validated on over 21,000 candidate responses already. We’ve also planned audits and prompt A/B tests to continually monitor for bias and drift. We’ve been thorough and scientific, so you don’t need to worry about glitches or hallucinations.

Non-negotiable transparency

No mystery scores here. For every candidate response, our AI provides a clear, written rationale explaining why it assigned a particular score. You can see the logic, review the transcript, and watch the video for yourself if you like. This transparency builds trust and ensures the entire process is auditable and fair.

Human in command

Our AI provides a recommendation, not a verdict. As a recruiter or hiring manager, you have complete control. You can watch every video, review every score, and if you disagree with the AI's assessment, you can edit or override it at any time. The AI works for you, handling the repetitive, structured work so you can focus your expertise on the nuanced, human-centered decisions.

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Let’s make first impressions fair

So let’s go back to the question:

"How can we have a meaningful, structured screening call with every applicant?"

The answer? By automating inconsistent screening calls, and giving every applicant a chance to have a structured conversation that speaks beyond their resume. And TestGorilla’s AI video interviews make that possible.

Check out the new feature here, or add it to your hiring process now if you’re a customer on our Pro plan. We hope you love it!