I started discussing how to structure the database, mentioning using a key-value store to map short URLs to original URLs. It felt good when I elaborated on strategies for collision handling.

The interviewer seemed engaged but pushed for a more detailed explanation on scalability, which I struggled with a bit. I didn't provide specific numbers or examples from past projects, which I think might have hurt my performance.

We wrapped up with some questions about handling traffic spikes, and I stuttered through some concepts.