Interview Questions › Product Design

Design a digital lost-and-found system for international airports

Design an end-to-end digital Lost & Found tracking, matching, and repatriation platform for travelers who leave items behind at airport security, gates, or aboard aircraft.

Context

Over 10,000 items (passports, laptops, jackets, jewelry) are lost weekly at major airport hubs, leading to long physical queues at lost property desks and low recovery rates.

Clarifying questions to ask first

• Does this integrate with airline in-flight lost property or airport terminal only? (Both).
• Who pays for return shipping? (Passenger pays shipping via integrated checkout).

How to approach it

1. User Personas: Distressed International Traveler (already boarded flight or left country) vs Airport Security/Cleaning Staff (cataloging hundreds of items rapidly)
2. System Architecture:
3. 1. Staff Rapid Item Ingestion: Point staff tablet camera at lost item -> AI automatically extracts brand, color, serial number, and generates visual digital tag
4. 2. Traveler Self-Service Filing: Multi-language web form with photo upload and flight boarding pass association
5. 3. Automated Computer Vision & Serial Number Matcher
6. 4. Secure Identity Verification & Global Courier Repatriation Integration (FedEx/DHL delivery to passenger's home address)

Framework: Two-Sided Process Flow (Staff Ingestion vs Traveler Claim) -> Computer Vision Tagging -> Automated Matching Algorithm -> Repatriation Delivery -> Metrics

Sample answer

• Manual data entry is the biggest bottleneck; AI image recognition catalogs items in 5 seconds
• Travelers need secure remote identity proofing (matching laptop wallpaper/passwords or passport names)

1. MVP: AI-assisted staff photo logging app, traveler self-serve claims portal with image matching, automated email notification upon 90%+ match, and 1-click DHL home delivery dispatch

Executive design: An automated airport lost-and-found ecosystem pairing computer vision intake for staff with self-service traveler claims and integrated global doorstep courier shipping.

What interviewers look for

• Staff Cataloging Efficiency
• Computer Vision Item Matching Accuracy
• International Identity Verification & Fraud Prevention
• Global Repatriation Logistics Integration