That's actually a good point.
I believe that BigTech these days look for conformists, not superstar SWEs. If you agree to waste your time on preparation to meaningless LeetCode style interview then you are one of them and ready to be a part of the company. I do believe that is actually one of the things that being tested by such an interview, it's not a proxy for IQ, it's a proxy for candidate's readiness to eat dull corporate BS and not complain about it.
People would rather get paid $80k a year and be a non-conformist than get paid $200k a year to conform to the requirements of a job. Simple as that. Problem is those non-conformists keep applying to the $200k jobs expecting the $80k treatment.
