Solve grid shortest-path and tree DP

Company: TikTok

Role: Software Engineer

Category: Coding & Algorithms

Difficulty: hard

Interview Round: Technical Screen

Quick Answer: This question pair evaluates proficiency in fundamental algorithmic techniques: finding shortest paths in a grid via breadth-first search and applying dynamic programming on trees to maximize a sum under adjacency constraints, assessing graph traversal, state management, optimal substructure recognition, and complexity handling.