What did you work on?

This summer, I worked on improving how property photos are displayed to travelers. I helped move the part of the system that crops images into a shared image service, so photos can be handled more consistently.

I designed how the new settings would work, built the changes and tested them with a small group of users before rolling them out more widely. I also helped test a smarter way of cropping photos so the main subject stays visible. It was incredibly fulfilling to work on something travelers will see and benefit from directly.

What did you takeaway?

Working on a system used by many travelers taught me how much planning goes into changes that may look simple on the surface. I was involved from understanding the original setup and testing ideas to launching the final update and checking that it worked as expected.

I also learned that software engineering is about more than writing code. Clear communication with different teams and a shared understanding of the goal are important to a successful launch. I also learned how AI can help speed up development while still requiring people to use good judgment.

What did you work on?

I spent my internship with the Business Continuity Management team within eIT. The team helps make sure important services can keep running when something unexpected happens.

During the internship, I created a central website for my team to store and find important information. The site went live and became a main place for the team to access its documents.

I also set up a process that uses AI to find updates in our existing document system, Confluence, and copy them to the portal. The process checks the information and helps keep it up to date. I improved the look and feel of the site and added features so it was easier to use.

What did you takeaway?

I learned more about how teams prepare for disruptions, recover from problems and keep important services running. I also learned how to apply technical skills to solve a real workplace need, how teams work together and why it is important to align my work with the team’s goals.

One lesson I will always remember is that taking time to find the best way to solve a problem can greatly reduce the amount of manual work needed.

What did you work on?

Over the past few months, I worked on the Modern Checkout experience within the Checkout Experience team. My focus was making critical checkout flows more resilient and reliable. I contributed to migrating a checkout loyalty repricing flow from a legacy path to a cleaner, more resilient service-driven architecture.

Along the way, I strengthened integration and smoke tests, improved rollout readiness and developed a deeper understanding of how backend engineering decisions shape the customer experience at scale.

What did you takeaway?

I learned how large-scale distributed systems are designed and evolved safely, and why “done” means reliable, testable and production-ready—not simply merged.

I also learned the importance of building systems that are safe, scalable and resilient, and how thoughtful backend engineering can directly influence the traveler experience.

What did you work on?

I worked with the Fraud Risk team, looking at how Expedia Group’s systems protect travelers and suppliers from fraud.

I worked on two projects. First, I looked at what happened when travelers were mistakenly blocked, including whether they were able to book again and how long it took them to do so.

Second, I studied what happened to supplier accounts that were mistakenly blocked by login security measures.

Both projects helped the team understand the effects of blocking the wrong people and find ways to protect users while creating a better experience for travelers and suppliers.

What did you takeaway?

I learned how to use data to understand what happens after a fraud decision, not just whether someone was blocked. I also learned how to compare outcomes over time to understand whether a security measure was helping or causing problems.

Most importantly, I learned that protecting people from fraud needs to be balanced with making sure legitimate travelers and suppliers can use the service easily.