Contacted by recruiter, and then went through phone screen. I passed the phone screen. recruiter said feedback was positive and no feedback to give since I aced it. Went to onsite for 5 additional coding rounds. Nailed all of the questions. One of the interviewers explicitly mentioned they were very impressed with my communication and coding skills and the way I solved the problem. 3 days later, they contact me saying after reviewing my background and experience, they decide to move forward with other candidates. Something fishy is going on - this company seems to be stringing people along with no intention of hiring. Be aware. This is supported by evidence by the role being reposted over and over again on linkedin for months.
I was surprised to be rejected based on ‘background and experience’ only after completing six interview rounds, especially since that information was already available on my resume before the process started. Given the amount of preparation and time required for the coding interviews, I would have appreciated earlier screening for those criteria.