The most recent interview loop I did had a really simple coding exercise (rough implementation of something from the C library with constraints). The rest of the loop was verbal algorithm design (here is a function, talk me through how you would implement it - not allowed to write code!), a system design whiteboarding exercise, and a debugging exercise. Loops like this are the future IMO as they measure more of the full SDLC instead of just the coding aspect of it. Leetcode and DSA challenges have their place in some specific roles but a loop full of leetcode is just cargo culting at this point.

Can confirm. I know of some people who have been going through interview loops similar to what you describe and it definitely seems like the way moving forward.