First it was technical questions with regards to control theory, understanding how to model simple systems, etc. Then there was a coding exercise where you model a system using python.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
If you look at this system (control theory system) what do you think will happen over time? is it stable?
I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Astranis (San Francisco, CA) in Oct 2025
Interview
First interview: two engineers, told me about the position, what Astranis does, and what they do. They then asked me to go over my resume quickly and then talk about a project I had worked on relevant to the position, asking me questions throughout. Then came the coding part, and they wanted to make me use a whiteboard to solve a problem but that didn't work (I think because I have a mac) so they went straight to the python compiler. I had to solve a mass-spring damper problem by deriving its equations of motion and then solving for its position and velocity. I wanted to use the scipy integrator library but they didn't let me, which led to my mistakes because I wasn't prepared to do it other ways. When I derived the equation of motion, they claimed I had a sign error but I actually didn't, which made me question the validity and preparedness of the interviewer. Overall, I didn't make it to the second round. Positive experience overall regardless and I wish I could've shown my skills fully.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about your experience
Tell me about a relevant project you've worked on
solve a mass-spring damper system and model it in python/c++
I received an email to schedule an interview 2 weeks after applying. it was a simple programming and physics problem (I failed because I applied for the wrong role :( )
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
looking at this diagram, (object connected to wall by spring, dampener is on wall), what is the behavior if you were to apply force on the object toward the wall. write an equation.