📰 3 THINGS TO CHECK OUT
How UX Professionals Can Lead AI Strategy
- UX consultant Paul Boag argues that AI strategy shouldn’t be left solely to leadership or engineering teams. As organizations adopt AI, he makes the case that UX professionals are well positioned to guide how it is implemented and make sure their organization protects quality, usability, and user needs.
- Drawing from practical experience and real-world workflows, Boag shows how UX teams can shape AI adoption by defining principles, setting guardrails, and connecting AI initiatives to long-standing UX priorities like research, testing, and accessibility.
- “Your role isn’t disappearing. It’s evolving into something more strategic, more valuable, and more secure—but only if you take the initiative to shape that evolution yourself.”
From Handoff to “Ship-Ready” Prototypes
- Product designer Pratheep Kumar Chelladurai shares how AI coding tools are reshaping the design-engineering relationship. This allows designers to move beyond static Figma files into fully functional, data-connected prototypes that engineers can plug directly into production—often in hours, not weeks.
- He argues that working this way changes how designers think about their role: not just as handoff partners, but as builders who understand data, components, and system behavior end to end.
- If you’re excited by this shift and want to learn how to bring your own “vibe-coded” prototypes to life, join our upcoming Vibe Coding Camp launching February 24, where you’ll learn to build and ship in an AI-accelerated environment.
Ableist Design: Challenging Systemic Norms
- Product designer Tamara Sredojevic examines how design often defaults to an able-bodied “norm,” quietly excluding millions of people in the process. Rather than framing accessibility as a technical checklist, she argues that ableism is a systemic issue that shapes who we design for, and who gets left out.
- Drawing from experience, design practice, and social theory, Sredojevic explores how assumptions, perfectionism, and profit-driven systems influence our tools, workflows, and decisions.
- Her perspective echoes the kind of thinking designers exercise in Advanced Usability and Accessibility (launching January 9), learning not just how to meet standards, but how to question norms and design more inclusively.
💜 PORTFOLIO INSPIRATION
UX Academy graduate Blake Lemons brings a rare blend of storytelling and systems thinking to his UX work, shaped by years directing animation for Netflix, DreamWorks, and others. Where others see interfaces, Blake sees narratives: how users move, feel, hesitate, and commit. That perspective shines in his FACT Fitness project, where a mobile-first redesign transformed a stagnant Wix site into a high-performing booking experience. The project boosted consultations by 155% through clearer information architecture, sharper CTAs, and a brand identity rooted in community. His client capstone, SpotSpot, explored a different challenge: designing a secure, joyful multiplayer creative space for kids. Grounded in user research with children and parents, Blake translated kids’ natural spatial understanding into a five-workspace system that balances creativity with trust and safety. Across both projects, Blake’s work shows how strong UX emerges at the intersection of research, restraint, and storytelling—whether the audience is marathoners or 9-year-old collaborators.
Got a portfolio you love that you’d like to share with our audience? Email your suggestions to hello@designlab.com.
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"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." — Mark Twain, writer
🧪 FROM THE LAB
How a Senior Product Designer Reignited Creativity Through Designlab’s UI Mastery Certification
We recently sat down with Senior Product Designer, Matt Tomko, to discuss how Designlab’s UI Mastery Certification program helped him sharpen his UI judgment, learn new techniques, and reawaken his creativity. Read his story.
The program itself is built around weekly studio sessions, hands-on practice, and direct feedback from a Designlab Design Fellow. The next cohort launches January 9, 2026, and applications are still open.
Learn More About UX Academy and UX Academy Foundations
January is a time when many people take the first step toward a new career. If you’re exploring the idea of UX or product design, our informational webinars are a great opportunity to learn more before making a commitment.
More than 2,000 students have chosen UX Academy to launch their careers, often starting with UX Academy Foundations, our beginner-friendly introductory course. In these info sessions, we cover how both programs work and answer your questions in a live Q&A. Register for an upcoming date to join us in person or receive a recording after the session.
