Designing the Future of Human-AI Interaction

August 19th

10:00 – 10:30 AM
Sönke Rohde — Principal UX Designer (Director), Google
AI-Native UX: Inverting Intelligence for Unprecedented Outcomes
The rapid pace of AI innovation demands a new approach to user experience design. In this talk, Sönke Rohde, Principal UX Designer at Google Cloud AI, introduces "AI-Native UX" – a practical framework for designing experiences where intelligent AI agents are deeply integrated into system operations, not just added features. We'll explore core concepts like "Entropy," which helps us determine when AI or humans should take the lead on tasks, and present an "Altitude" framework for structuring next-generation AI interfaces. Most importantly, learn about the "Inversion of Intelligence": a shift where humans focus on defining strategic goals (the 'why'), allowing AI to orchestrate and execute complex plans using its full range of capabilities. Discover how this new design practice can help your team unlock significant efficiency gains and drive truly innovative product development.

10:30 – 11:00 AM
Akanksha Bansal — Senior UX Designer, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Amazon AWS
Storytelling with Data
Storytelling with data uses narratives and visualizations to convey insights and meaning. It combines data, context, and audience focus to make complex information more engaging. Effective data storytelling helps audiences understand key points and make informed decisions. By presenting data in a clear and compelling way, you can drive action and engagement.

11:00 – 11:30 AM
Vax Liu — Staff Design Lead, AI Superintelligence Lab, Meta
UX in the Infinite Game
Design beyond quick wins. This talk explores how Infinite Game principles can help us build purpose-driven and adaptive design experiences that are made to evolve and create lasting impact.

11:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Break

12:00 – 12:30 PM
Dan Littlewood — Sr. Product Designer, Microsoft
Masterful or Manic? Designing through cognitive chaos: How to tell If you’re on to something, or just losing the plot
This talk explores the overlap between creativity, neurodiversity, and uncertainty. I’ll share how product thinkers can navigate fast, nonlinear thought patterns, using real-time capture tools (AI and lo-fi alike), leaning on trusted collaborators, and designing systems that help separate real insight from false urgency. It’s shaped by my own experience working with a mind affected by cognitive noise, and how I’ve learned to create clarity without relying on mental clarity. One provocation from the presentation: Do you have someone you can trust that can anchor in your process? Who do you trust to say, “That’s brilliant,” or “That’s a little unhinged,”?

12:30 – 1:00 PM
Eric Dorf — Senior Lead UX Designer, Google
Story Arc for AI
Eric will share insights on using a story arc to craft the narrative for an AI project he led as Design Director. A story arc charts the natural flow of a story, from build-up to climax to resolution, creating a cohesive, engaging framework. In presentations, it helps organize ideas, guiding the audience through the message in a way that’s clear, compelling, and memorable.

1:00 – 1:30 PM
Kumar Mayank — Senior Leader, UX & Product Design, Google
Unleashing Design Superpowers: AI as Your Agentic Co-Pilot
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly reshaping every industry, and design is no exception. This talk will explore the explosive evolution of AI technology over the past few years, focusing on how these advancements, particularly in Agentic AI, are augmenting the work and processes of designers and researchers. We'll cover real-world examples and share actionable insights that help with your daily tasks, so you can turbocharge your workflows, ultimately amplifying your productivity by using AI as your co-pilot.

August 20th

10:00 AM
Stefan Klocek — AI Design Architect, HubSpot
Becoming AI Fluent: The New Habits of Designers in an AI-First World
AI fluency isn’t about memorizing prompt tricks or chasing the latest model release. It’s about cultivating new habits of perception, practice, and presence that let designers work with AI as a partner rather than a tool. In this talk, we explore what fluency means for design leaders and practitioners today: seeing in systems instead of solutions, working in dialogue instead of monologue, moving in metaphor and pattern, revising recursively, and holding care and ethics inside the loop. It's about tool building for thinking, about exploring as a way of knowing.

10:30 AM
Risa Hiyama — Sr. Product Designer, Netflix
GenAI in Action: Practical Ways to Enhance Your Product Design Workflow
I’ll be sharing practical ways I use AI in my product design process—from brainstorming, prototyping, optimizing workflow, and more. The session will cover which tools work best for different tasks, how I combine them for better results, and easy tips you can try right away, regardless of experience level.

11:00 AM
Adil Dhanani — Design Director, Slack
Designing With AI Is Like Pairing With a Weirdly Confident Intern
Ever worked with someone who’s 100% confident and only maybe 60% right? That’s AI in your product. In this talk, we’ll explore how to design UX patterns that help teams collaborate with AI the way they would with a junior teammate—by guiding, correcting, and building shared understanding. You’ll learn how transparency, feedback loops, and human-centered design can turn that weirdly confident intern into a true design partner.

11:30 AM
Break

12:00 PM
Alex J. Woo — Design, Netflix
Designing AI for Good
We’ve all heard the warnings about AI. But what if we flipped the script? This talk reveals how human-centered design transforms AI from something to fear into something that empowers. From restoring independence to people with disabilities, to creating inclusive experiences, to driving climate action, we’ll explore how AI can unlock bright possibility. You’ll leave with real stories, actionable ideas, and the belief that you can start making a difference today.

12:30 – 1:00 PM
Kelly Dern — Senior Staff Product Designer, SoFi
From Pixels to Presence: Evolving Design for Invisible Experiences
In the age of AI, the role of product designers is dramatically changing. This talk reveals how designers are becoming essential architects of invisible experiences. We'll deep dive into the unique challenges and opportunities of designing for AI, emerging UX surfaces, patterns, and principles. Learn how to evolve your skillset and remain competitive in this rapidly shifting landscape.

1:00 – 1:30 PM
Jackson Mystkowski — Staff UX Content Designer, SoFi
Conversational AI is a Portable Confessional: How Designers Can Advocate for People Who Are Struggling
With conversational AI, we’re building, training, and dressing the perfect stranger. We’re doing it quickly—just get MVP out and we’ll follow someday with nice-to-haves. People are into the perfect stranger—asking and confessing things they might never share with others. And while AI won’t judge or gossip, right now it often lacks the emotional resources to meet struggling customers where they are to lead them somewhere better. I think we’re now obligated as designers to deliver more than empathetic, active listening in our conversational AIs. Every release, we should advocate to deepen our model’s ability to deliver relevant, actionable emotional support. Let’s talk about how.