Too many people staring directly at their laptops and typing furiously as I answered their questions. Kind of the opposite of doing what they should be doing, which is making eye contact. They were obviously told by management that they needed to keep track of all my responses, but it was very unnerving.

My interview experience with Zymergen is the most bizarre one. For all the positions at Zymergen I applied, I received calls from HRs, even though I felt some of them are not interested in me at all (Maybe they are required to call a number of people each day). I had a chance to talk to the hiring manager in one position and did a panel interview with the group. The interview experience was fine, but did not get any feedback from HR or hiring manager for 2 months. I felt the HR is not being professional or respectful.

Gave a presentation to the team, fielding several questions. Met with several scientists and directors, discussing how I would have workstreams. Received a tour of the labs and work areas.