[smt88]

Fresh CS grads are a net cost to startups for a while, probably months and maybe years. It doesn't matter how many tests they've passed. They don't have real-world skills, especially non-technical skills.

They would've been hired easily by over-funded startups in previous years, but a lot of the money is now being raised by "AI" companies that are a thin veneer over external APIs or FOSS projects, so the number of developers needed is lower.

The huge layoffs over the last few years have also made experienced staff available and less expensive.

[amoorthy]

I'm very curious if experienced staff is available and less expensive now. As a venture-backed startup founder myself I'm quite eager to hire such folks and don't have the money to compete with larger firms. Maybe silly question but where are such folks hanging out, besides HN? :-)