Product design question

Design Facebook for monks.

Practice this question out loud. An AI interviewer asks it, follows up like a real interviewer would, and scores your answer. Type or speak.

What this question tests

Extreme persona design: can the candidate reason about a very different set of values and needs than a typical social media user.

Clarify the persona: monks likely value simplicity, minimal distraction, and community connection over broadcasting or social validation.
Identify the actual need: staying connected to a small, trusted community and sharing teachings or reflections, not viral reach or engagement metrics.
Name what standard Facebook gets wrong for this user: infinite scroll, notifications, ads, and algorithmic feeds optimized for engagement conflict directly with values like mindfulness and non-attachment.
Redesign core mechanics: remove infinite scroll and engagement-driven notifications, replace the feed with intentional, periodic check-ins, and remove likes or public metrics that encourage ego or comparison.
Keep only what serves the real need: a simple space to share reflections with a trusted small group and coordinate community activities.
Define success not by engagement time (the opposite of the goal) but by user reported sense of connection and reduced feeling of distraction.

Identifies that standard engagement-maximizing mechanics (infinite scroll, likes, notifications) are actively in conflict with this user's values, not just unnecessary.
Proposes a genuinely different success metric, reported sense of connection rather than time spent, appropriate for a product meant to minimize compulsive use.
Keeps the design minimal on purpose rather than just adding a 'zen mode' skin on top of standard Facebook.

Designing a reskinned version of standard Facebook without questioning whether its core mechanics even fit this user.
Using engagement time as a success metric for a product explicitly meant to reduce compulsive engagement.

How would you monetize a product explicitly designed to minimize engagement time?
Would monks actually want a digital product at all, and how would you validate that first?