← Uber Interview Insights

Uber·Data Scientist·Technical Phone Screen·Senior

Senior
Jul 2026

Summary

Uber DS interview with a meaty metric investigation case. The whole thing was one long question about a seasonal accident rate spike, and they clearly wanted you to go several layers deep, not just list hypotheses and call it done.

Questions Asked (1)

Q1

A monthly chart shows Uber's accident rate rising sharply from June through November, then falling quickly. The metric is reported accidents per 100,000 completed trips. Walk through how you'd investigate what's driving that pattern.

Root Cause AnalysisProduct Analytics & MetricsA/B Testing & Experimentation
Author's notes

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Start by validating the metric definition and data quality, then decompose the rate into its numerator (reported accidents) and denominator (completed trips) to see which component drives the pattern. Segment the data by geography, time, driver/rider cohorts, and product type to identify where the spike is concentrated, and finally test hypotheses with experiments or causal methods to confirm root causes.

Pro tip: Always check for reporting artifacts first—changes in reporting thresholds, app updates, or incentive programs can create artificial spikes. Also, consider seasonality and external factors (e.g., weather, holidays) that might explain the rise and fall.

1. Validate Data and Metric Definition

Confirm how 'reported accidents' and 'completed trips' are defined, and check for data pipeline issues, reporting changes, or missing data that could distort the trend.

2. Decompose the Metric

Break down the rate into numerator and denominator trends to see if the spike is due to more accidents, fewer trips, or both. Also, check if the pattern holds across different segments.

3. Segment and Drill Down

Analyze by geography, time of day, driver tenure, rider demographics, product type (e.g., UberX, Pool), and other relevant dimensions to localize the issue.

4. Generate and Test Hypotheses

Form hypotheses about potential causes (e.g., seasonal weather, new driver onboarding, app feature changes, incentives) and test them using historical data, A/B tests, or quasi-experimental methods.

5. Synthesize Findings and Recommend Actions

Summarize the likely drivers, quantify their impact, and propose next steps such as further analysis, product changes, or policy adjustments.

Key Points to Mention

  • Data quality checks: reporting bias, definition changes, and pipeline integrity.
  • Metric decomposition: separate numerator (accidents) and denominator (trips) trends.
  • Segmentation: by city, time, driver/rider cohorts, and product type to isolate the spike.
  • External factors: seasonality, weather, holidays, and regulatory changes.
  • Internal factors: driver incentives, onboarding changes, app updates, and safety features.
  • Causal inference: use difference-in-differences, propensity score matching, or A/B tests to validate causes.

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.