Strategy question
Tell me about a new use case for a smart product.
- Strategy
- Easy
Practice this question out loud. An AI interviewer asks it, follows up like a real interviewer would, and scores your answer. Type or speak.
Start a mock interview on this question · Mock interview from a job description
What this question tests
Tests creative but grounded product thinking: proposing a genuinely new smart-product use case with a clear user need and technical plausibility, not just a novelty idea.
How to approach it
- Pick a specific underserved context, such as smart home energy management for renters, who typically lack control over major home systems but still want to save on utility costs.
- Identify the core need: renters cannot install permanent smart thermostats or solar systems, but still want visibility and control over their energy usage and costs.
- Propose the use case: a portable, plug-in smart energy monitor that tracks appliance-level usage and gives personalized recommendations to reduce cost, without requiring landlord permission or permanent installation.
- Address feasibility: such a device already has technical precedent (smart plugs, energy monitors), so the innovation is in the personalized recommendation layer and renter-specific positioning, not new hardware invention.
- Define success: energy cost savings reported by users and device retention (continued use past the first month), since novelty devices often get abandoned quickly.
What a strong answer includes
- Targets a specific underserved segment, renters, rather than a generic 'smart home for everyone' idea that ignores real constraints like lack of permanent installation rights.
- Grounds the idea in existing, proven technology (smart plugs, energy monitors), making it a smart application of existing tech rather than an implausible invention.
- Names device retention as a success metric, correctly anticipating the common failure mode of smart-home gadgets being abandoned after initial novelty wears off.
- Ties the use case to a clear, tangible user benefit, verified cost savings, rather than technology for its own sake.
Common mistakes
- Proposing an idea that requires permanent installation or landlord permission, ignoring the renter-specific constraint that makes the idea distinctive.
- Focusing on the technology itself rather than a clear user need and benefit.
Likely follow-up questions
- How would you make the cost-saving recommendations feel genuinely personalized rather than generic tips?
- How would you monetize this device and its ongoing service?
More strategy questions
- Google Keep is a free product to save, share notes etc. How would you make it a subscription product & monetize it?Google · Strategy · Hard
- With an unlimited network bandwidth what would you build?Google · Strategy · Hard
- Strategize and implement omni-channel initiatives to improve customer LTV for Walmart.Shopify · Strategy · Hard
- Should Google launch a TV service?Google · Strategy · Hard
- Your company has been able to digitize smell, how will you launch this new service?Google · Strategy · Hard
- What should Airbnb's strategy be during the COVID-19 pandemic?Google · Strategy · Hard
More questions from Google
Learn the skill behind it
Chapters of the AI PM course that teach what this question tests.
- Chapter 4: Discovery and strategy for AI products
- Chapter 9: Prove it paid off: outcomes, economics, and pricing
- Chapter 14: Get the job: the AI PM interview loop