It's a bit of a strawman argument - I'm not aware of any company that hires purely based on leetcode results; they typically also include interviews focused on product/design skills and "culture fit".
Sure, the FAANGs and other companies aren't exclusively hiring based on time-constrained leetcode performance, but they are extremely biased towards it.
The coding sessions are pass/fail, you need to get to some type of solution that works. If you get most of the way there and were maybe just slow, it doesn't matter, you will not be hired.
On the other hand, companies are very flexible on system design and background sessions.
This lopsided process allows LC superstars to get through despite glaring deficiencies once they are involved in day-to-day work.
The coding sessions are pass/fail, you need to get to some type of solution that works. If you get most of the way there and were maybe just slow, it doesn't matter, you will not be hired.
On the other hand, companies are very flexible on system design and background sessions.
This lopsided process allows LC superstars to get through despite glaring deficiencies once they are involved in day-to-day work.