MachineHack emerges as the go-to platform for AI/ML professionals, offering hackathons, and assessments to bridge the gap LeetCode can't fill.
A notable change is taking place in the ever-evolving landscape of tech hiring. LeetCode, once a cornerstone of technical interview preparation, is losing its charm. Gaurav Sen, the CEO of InterviewReady, a platform focused on system design interviews, explains the flaw, "LeetCode is designed for interview preparation, not upskilling."
As a result, prominent firms such as Accenture, Airtable, Betterment, and GitLab are transitioning away from LeetCode-style interviews to more practical, real-world assessments.
The lack of AI and ML-related practice questions is another reason why LeetCode finds itself irrelevant for AI and ML engineers. This is where MachineHack steps in. The platform empowers AI developers through hackathons, community learning, and comprehensive assessments, and aims to bridge the gap between LeetCode and ML.
MachineHack Generative AI is a complete package where developers can showcase their work, collaborate with other AI/ML developers, and participate in hackathons. Unlike LeetCode, which is mainly limited to data structure algorithms (DSA), MachineHack covers DSA, ML, and all the other essentials for ML jobs.
"We've designed MachineHack to be the ultimate package for AI/ML enthusiasts and professionals. Our platform provides a holistic approach to career growth, offering everything from skill development to networking. It caters to the evolving needs of developers and employers in this dynamic field," said Saket Narayane, product lead (AI) at MachineHack Generative AI.
Unlike LeetCode, MachineHack is renowned for its hackathons, which challenge developers to solve real-world problems.
So far, the platform has hosted over 200 AI hackathons, including the immensely popular Data Science Student Championship and the Bhasha Techathon (in collaboration with Google and the Government of India). MachineHack provides the perfect platform for developers to apply their skills in practical scenarios.
"As a first-time user of MachineHack, I believe it's a fantastic platform to kickstart my data science journey. It's user-friendly and well-organised, making it easy to access data, submit solutions, see the leaderboard, etc," said Shubham Aggarwal, a student from IIT Madras. He added that overall, MachineHack provided a very positive and engaging experience that "solidified my interest in data science. I'm excited to keep learning and participating in future challenges!"
These events are backed by industry leaders who are keen to discover and nurture new talent. For instance, the Great Indian Hiring Hackathon and MATHCO.THON: The Data Scientist Hiring Hackathon by TheMathCompany are notable examples where participants can directly interact with potential employers.
One of its standout events is the Ideathon: How to Detect AI-Generated Content, which invites participants to build tools that can flag AI-generated content in text, images, videos, and audio. This ideathon is research-oriented and attracts esteemed research scholars, providing a platform for deep, exploratory work in AI/ML.
Unlike popular coding platforms like LeetCode and Kaggle, MachineHack is designed to be a vibrant community where generative AI professionals can share insights, learn from each other, and grow together.
Akash Kundu, the winner of the Video Frames Sorting Challenge, said that top performers helped him stay motivated to compete with them. "Grandmaster of the hackathons helped and guided me to be a top-ranker while I was in the learning phase," he added.
Narayane told AIM that MachineHack connects users with mentors and peers, facilitating a supportive network that can provide guidance, feedback, and career advice. The mentorship aspect is crucial for professional growth and skill enhancement in this rapidly evolving field of AI.
Often, platforms like Kaggle are saturated with difficult questions, and beginners can get overwhelmed by the complexity of questions.
Narayane noted that MachineHack is one of the best platforms to get started with AI and ML. "It offers a variety of AI and ML courses. Plus, the participants can then attend hackathons relevant to the AI course, which would give them a confidence boost," he added.
Himanshu Agnihotri, a BTech student in AI, agrees that the platform helps tackle real-world challenges. "The platform's user-friendly setup and rich resources made it easy to dive into problem-solving. Engaging with different datasets and tackling real-world challenges was both exciting and fulfilling," he added.
Besides MachineHack, other platforms like deep-ml also provide the UI of LeetCode for AI. "But these are relatively new projects that lack hackathons, courses, and a platform to connect with other developers," concluded Narayane.
