I went straight into user flows and almost forgot to set up the problem space first.
Start by clarifying the scenario and requirements, then design a system that prioritizes reliability, low latency, and privacy. Structure your answer around user needs, technical architecture, and trade-offs, emphasizing Amazon's leadership principles like Customer Obsession and Ownership.
Pro tip: Acknowledge the life-critical nature of the feature and discuss how you would handle false positives/negatives, showing you understand the stakes and can balance safety with usability.
Ask questions to understand the scope: Is this for Alexa-enabled devices only? Should it detect break-ins via audio cues or integrate with existing security systems? What are the latency and reliability requirements?
Outline the end-to-end experience: detection (e.g., glass break, door opening), confirmation (e.g., voice prompt), and action (e.g., call emergency contacts, notify monitoring service). Consider fallback if user doesn't respond.
Propose a high-level system: on-device detection for low latency, cloud-based verification and dispatch, integration with emergency services APIs, and redundancy (e.g., cellular backup). Address data flow and storage.
Discuss false alarms, privacy concerns (always-on listening), and reliability (network outages). Suggest solutions like multi-factor confirmation, local processing, and fail-safes.
Weigh trade-offs (e.g., speed vs. accuracy, cost vs. reliability) and define success metrics (e.g., detection accuracy, response time, user trust).
AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.