Cimba.ai interview experience Real time questions & tips from candidates to crack your interview

SDE - 2

Cimba.ai
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3 rounds | 4 Coding problems

Interview preparation journey

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Application story
I recently applied for a position through a cold email expressing my interest in the role and the organization. To my surprise, I received a positive response from the HR department. They reached out to acknowledge my application and confirm my availability for an interview. This was an encouraging development, as it showed that my email and profile had successfully caught their attention despite not applying through the usual channels. The HR representative was professional and courteous, providing details about the interview process and offering a few time slots for me to choose from. I promptly responded with my preferred time, expressing my enthusiasm and gratitude for the opportunity. The experience reinforced the importance of taking initiative and reaching out proactively. Sometimes, a well-crafted cold email can open doors that traditional application routes may not, leading to meaningful opportunities like this scheduled interview.
Why selected/rejected for the role?
I believe I was selected for this role because my skills, experience, and enthusiasm aligned closely with the organization’s requirements. My background matched the key qualifications they were seeking, and during the interview, I was able to clearly demonstrate both my technical expertise and my understanding of their goals. I also showed strong communication skills, adaptability, and a genuine interest in contributing to the team’s success. The interviewer appreciated my proactive approach and problem-solving mindset, which likely made me a strong fit for the position.
Preparation
Duration: 5 months
Topics: DSA, System Design, DBMS, Spring Boot, Concurrency
Tip
Tip

Tip 1: Do at least 2 projects to showcase your practical knowledge and skills.
Tip 2: Have a clear understanding of the work you did in your previous organization so you can explain it confidently during interviews.

Application process
Where: Email Approach
Eligibility: NA, (Salary package: 18 LPA)
Resume Tip
Resume tip

Tip 1: Make good, well-structured projects that clearly demonstrate your skills.
Tip 2: Don’t write overly long paragraphs - keep your points concise and easy to read.

Interview rounds

01
Round
Medium
Video Call
Duration60 minutes
Interview date22 May 2025
Coding problem2

1. Container with Maximum Water

Easy
10m average time
90% success
0/40
Asked in companies
OracleFacebookAmazon

You have been given an array/list ‘ARR‘ of length ‘N’ consisting of non-negative integers ARR1, ARR2, ..., ARRN. The i’th integer denotes a point with coordinates (i, ARR[i]). ‘N’ vertical lines are drawn such that the two endpoints of the i’th line are at (i, arr[i]) and (i,0).

Your task is to find two lines, which, together with the x-axis, form a container, such that the container contains the most water. Return the maximum area of the container.

Note:
1. Consider the container to be 2-dimensional for simplicity. 
2. For any pair of sides ignore all the lines that lie inside that pair of sides. 
3. You are not allowed to slant the container.

Example

Example:

Consider 'ARR'= {1,8,6,2,5,4,8,3,7} then the vertical lines are represented by the above image. The blue section denotes the maximum water than a container can contain.
Problem approach

Try every pair (i, j): compute area and keep max → O(n²) time. Correct but too slow for large n.
Initialize left = 0, right = n - 1, maxArea = 0.
While left < right:
Compute width = right - left.
Compute height = min(height[left], height[right]).
Compute area = width * height. If area > maxArea, set maxArea = area.
If height[left] < height[right], increment left by 1 (move left pointer right).
Else, decrement right by 1 (move right pointer left). (If equal heights, moving either is fine.)
When loop ends, maxArea is the answer

Try solving now

2. Valid Sudoku

Moderate
0/80
Asked in company
Cimba.ai

You are given a (9X9) square integer matrix, that contains values between 0-9.This matrix represents a sudoku. Check if sudoku is valid or not.

- The sudoku can be completely filled or partially filled.
- An entry 0 indicates that the corresponding cell is empty.
- Your task is to find out whether this sudoku is valid or not.
- Standard sudoku rules are to be enforced to check whether a sudoku is valid/invalid.
    1. No value should be repeating in a given row.
    2. No value should be repeating in a given column.
    3. No value should be repeating in each of the 9 (3X3) square grids.
- Return a boolean response.
Problem approach

Prepare three arrays of sets:
rows[9] — set for each row,
cols[9] — set for each column,
boxes[9] — set for each 3×3 box.
For each cell (r, c) (r and c from 0..8):
If cell is '.' (empty) skip it.
Let val be the digit character.
Compute box index: boxIndex = (r / 3) * 3 + (c / 3) (integer division).
If val in rows[r] or cols[c] or boxes[boxIndex] → return false.
Otherwise add val to rows[r], cols[c], and boxes[boxIndex].
If loop finishes, return true.

Try solving now
02
Round
Medium
Video Call
Duration60 minutes
Interview date3 Jun 2025
Coding problem1

1. System Design

Design BookMyShow app.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Always begin by clarifying what the interviewer expects.
Tip 2: Define Functional & Non-Functional requirements.
Tip 3: Scaling considerations.

03
Round
Hard
Video Call
Duration60 minutes
Interview date18 Jun 2025
Coding problem1

It was a technical discussion with CEO.

1. System Design

Design Cricbuzz type app.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Real-Time Score Updates.
Tip 2: Notifications & Alerts.
Tip 3: Monitoring & Analytics.

Here's your problem of the day

Solving this problem will increase your chance to get selected in this company

Skill covered: Programming

How do you remove whitespace from the start of a string?

Choose another skill to practice
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