Bloomberg System Design Interview: Ride-Sharing Rider–Driver Matching

The interviewer opens

Hello, and thank you for joining. Welcome to your interview for the software engineer role at Bloomberg. We'll design a system together, and you can sketch on the whiteboard on the right of your screen as you talk. If you need to step out or take a break, the Pause button at the top right will pause the interview.

The problem is a ride-sharing matching service, and it's in the Problem tab now. Please read through the requirements and ask me anything you'd like clarified before you start drawing.

The problem

Design a ride-sharing service like Uber where drivers continuously report their live location, riders request a ride from where they stand, and the system quickly matches each rider with a suitable nearby driver.

Must do

• Drivers send their live location while online
• Riders request a ride from a pickup point to a destination
• System finds nearby available drivers and offers the ride to one
• Driver accepts or declines; rider sees the assigned driver approaching
• Trip status tracked from request through completion

Must hold

• Riders get matched within seconds, even at peak
• A driver is never assigned to two riders at once