Walk through the common probability distributions and when each applies.
Distribution questions check whether you can map a data-generating process to the right model. What matters is knowing what each distribution describes plus a concrete use case, not memorizing PDFs. Here is the practical map.
Updated Sep 2026 · Grounded in real GenAI, LLM, and AI/ML engineering interview loops and written to a senior-engineer editorial bar.
Distribution questions check whether you can map a data-generating process to the right model. What matters is knowing what each distribution describes plus a concrete use case, not memorizing PDFs. Here is the practical map.
Lead with where the obvious approach breaks, because that is the judgment they are screening for — most candidates jump straight to the happy path and lose the room.
Then walk the failure back through the pipeline in order, naming the one metric the customer's exec sponsor actually cares about before you propose the fix.
