Podcasts about Figma

In this episode, we cover three major stories shaping the startup and tech landscape. First, Google unveils Stitch, an AI-powered web design tool with one-click export to Figma—signaling a major disruption for freelance design marketplaces. Then, Salesforce returns to M&A with its $8B acquisition of Informatica, aiming to broaden its AI data stack beyond CRM. Finally, we break down the surge in startup M&A activity, with billion-dollar deals from OpenAI, DoorDash, and others—hinting at a major Q2 rebound. Don't miss Jason's insights on what these trends mean for founders and investors.(0:00) Episode Teaser(1:36) Jason's in SINGAPORE(3:14) The Power of Shame and why we need “Ozempic for screentime”(10:15) OpenPhone - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get 20% off your first 6 months at www.openphone.com/⁠twist(12:38) Google's latest AI breakthrough: Stitch(20:13) CLA - Get started with CLA's CPAs, consultants, and wealth advisors now at https://claconnect.com/tech(21:20) The NBA on Polymarket and what founders can learn from the Knicks(27:08) Why did Salesforce buy Informatica?(30:03) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.(32:42) M&A activity continues, and Jason's spicy Q2 predictions(40:57) Did tech go woke or was it just performative the whole time?(45:22) Circle, stablecoins, and the perks of being pro-business(51:27) What Trump's “golden share” of US Steel might look like(54:15) Why Jason is bullish on Joby(57:28) Episode wrap-up and upcoming eventsSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpLinks from episode:ClearSpace App: https://www.getclearspace.com/Google Stitch: https://stitch.withgoogle.com/Joby: https://www.jobyaviation.com/Follow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:(10:15) OpenPhone - Streamline and scale your customer communications with OpenPhone. Get 20% off your first 6 months at www.openphone.com/⁠twist(20:13) CLA - Get started with CLA's CPAs, consultants, and wealth advisors now at https://claconnect.com/tech(30:03) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

Midjourney Fast Hours, Episode 40 After a short hiatus (blame conferences and caffeine dependency), the Rory Flynn and Drew Brucker break down Google's shiny new Flow suite — with its Veo 3 video model, sound + dialogue generation, and confusing-as-hell product naming. They talk strategy, cost, coherence, and why it still feels like Midjourney has that “magic dust” no one else can replicate.Along the way: Runway love, layering hacks, JSON secrets, interior design with arrows, and 3D dogs with job titles. It's fun. It's weird. It's chaotic. But you'll probably walk away with 3 ideas you want to try right away.Also, someone paid $125 just to tell you whether it's worth it. (You're welcome.)---Midjourney Fast Hour0:00 – When did this madness begin?2:19 – AI video is finally getting spicy3:29 – Google's Flow Suite: Veo 3, sound, and coherence5:02 – Google's confusing product soup: Flow, Gemini, Imagen, Whisk10:45 – Pricing pain: Is Veo 3 worth the $125?13:09 – Veo 2 vs Veo 3: Best value tips and tradeoffs15:08 – Prompt accuracy and physics: Is Google really listening?17:53 – Why less prompt effort = better results now19:40 – Veo 3 vs Kling vs Midjourney: Prompting philosophies20:52 – Scene builder: Longer takes and smart extension workflows22:34 – The catch: extending drops quality and loses sound24:17 – New image-to-video support + third-party images25:41 – Ingredients-based generation and persistent characters27:10 – Frame extraction: finally, a feature we all needed28:08 – Timeline editing, upscaling, and staying inside the tool29:48 – Sora vs Veo 3 vs Runway: usability and consistency31:43 – Canva, Figma, Framer: Tools are becoming monsters35:33 – Figma's new AI website builder is wild36:40 – Prompting sneaker ads and JSON-based design37:09 – Why training teams on AI is almost impossible38:07 – Hedra who? Veo 3 makes fast pivots a must39:55 – Midjourney's next move: what video could look like41:11 – Runway's underrated features and clever reference hacks44:26 – Scene sketching and layout prompting: mind blown47:25 – Interior design from mood board to layout to render49:45 – Lighting direction via floorplans = next-gen hack52:53 – Try-on tech and Chrome extensions54:22 – Style consistency with JSON + ChatGPT58:23 – Mass-generating stylized icons and dogs with jobs1:02:36 – Midjourney updates: V7.1, personalization, and video1:05:01 – What Midjourney must get right with video1:07:18 – The one-shot window to impress1:09:23 – Bring back the Midjourney magic1:11:14 – Wrap-up: chaotic times, coherent thoughts, caffeinated takes

Miriam Suzanne, web developer, artist, and co-founder of OddBird, talks about the philosophy and evolution of web design. We explore CSS origins, the cascade, accessibility, and how the balance between user control and brand expression defines the spirit of the web. Links Website: https://www.miriamsuzanne.com Mastodon: https://front-end.social/@mia GitHub: https://github.com/mirisuzanne Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/miriam.codes CodePen: https://codepen.io/miriamsuzanne LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terriblemia Resources CERN: https://info.cern.ch Cascading HTML style sheets proposal: https://www.w3.org/People/howcome/p/cascade.html Axe Accessibility Testing Tools: https://www.deque.com/axe The Design of Web Design talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th1qORyvBcc We want to hear from you! How did you find us? Did you see us on Twitter? In a newsletter? Or maybe we were recommended by a friend? Let us know by sending an email to our producer, Em, at emily.kochanek@logrocket.com (mailto:emily.kochanek@logrocket.com), or tweet at us at PodRocketPod (https://twitter.com/PodRocketpod). Follow us. Get free stickers. Follow us on Apple Podcasts, fill out this form (https://podrocket.logrocket.com/get-podrocket-stickers), and we'll send you free PodRocket stickers! What does LogRocket do? LogRocket provides AI-first session replay and analytics that surfaces the UX and technical issues impacting user experiences. Start understanding where your users are struggling by trying it for free at LogRocket.com. Try LogRocket for free today. (https://logrocket.com/signup/?pdr)

Tired of stressing over your UX portfolio? Discover smart ways to showcase your value clearly, even if you're buried in NDAs or complex enterprise projects. Learn how to simplify your story, prioritize content strategically, and confidently communicate your UX expertise without falling into portfolio overwhelm.How do you turn years of complicated UX work into a clear, concise story that hiring managers actually want to read?This week, I welcome back Aneta Kmiecik, who has made it her mission to help mid-to-senior UX designers tackle the common nightmare of portfolio creation. Having transitioned from architecture to UX herself, she has a deep understanding of the challenges, especially when it comes to showcasing complex, NDA-heavy projects or navigating roles with less visually striking outcomes.We explore practical strategies for creating concise, impactful portfolios without lengthy traditional case studies. She introduces the powerful concept of "project snapshots," a straightforward way to quickly and effectively highlight the core value and outcomes of your UX work. We discuss essential habits for proactively capturing your work as it occurs, rather than scrambling when you suddenly need to apply for a job.If you've ever felt portfolio anxiety or struggled to clearly showcase your real UX value, tune in for actionable insights to transform your portfolio approach and confidently land your next role.Topics:• 02:42 The Stress of Creating Portfolios• 02:57 Aneta's Journey and Expertise• 03:50 Actionable Advice for UX Portfolios• 09:03 The Importance of Work Journals• 14:24 Crafting Case Studies for Your Next Job• 28:58 Common Mistakes in UX Portfolios• 30:53 Common Portfolio Mistakes• 31:57 Alternative Ways to Showcase Work• 33:10 Creating Project Snapshots• 38:27 Choosing the Right Platform• 45:10 Final Thoughts and AdviceHelpful Links:• Connect with Aneta on LinkedIn• Follow Aneta on Instagram• Aneta's UX Portfolio Course---Support our sponsors!Ok web designers. Let's talk about the “c” word—creative burnout.You're working on a site for a really big client, but between resourcing, feedback, tight budgets and even tighter deadlines—it doesn't make the cut. Wix Studio helps close that gap, so you can deliver your vision with less friction. Built for agencies and enterprises, you get total creative control over every last pixel. With no-code animations, AI-powered tools, reusable design assets, advanced, intuitive layout tools and a Figma to Wix Studio integration, you can design the way you want to and deliver when you need to.And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have—don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running.For your next project, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wixstudio.com

Subscribe at www.thisnewway.com to get the step-by-step playbooks, tools, and workflows.In episode 6 of This New Way, Fredrik Thomassen and Phillip Maggs walk us through how Superside—a global creative services company—has fundamentally transformed its workflows using generative AI. From automating asset production to embedding AI directly into tools like Figma, Superside is pushing the boundaries of what's possible in creative automation. We also get a live demo of their “brief-to-draft” workflow and discuss how AI is reshaping the talent landscape.TIMESTAMPS: 0:52 – What Superside does and its global scale2:10 – Phil's role and what “Director of Generative AI Excellence” means4:08 – The turning point: DALL·E and Superside's AI transformation8:00 – How they approached AI experimentation via “shadow projects”10:54 – Testing AI-created assets alongside human work13:20 – How talent profiles are changing with AI19:00 – Where AI is most disruptive: video production22:00 – Live demo: from brief to hundreds of personalized assets32:00 – In-tool editing and automation directly in Figma36:00 – Image-to-video transformation with Runway41:00 – What's next for Superside and the creative industry46:30 – Final thoughts: what Fredrik and Phil are most excited aboutTOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES MENTIONED:DALL·E – AI image generationMidJourney – Creative image ideationStable Diffusion – Open-source image genChatGPT / GPT-3.5+ – Prompt writing and copy supportFigma – Design collaboration with custom AI pluginsRunway ML – AI video generationZapier – Workflow automationSuperspace – Superside's internal platformFoul – Model inference layerNode-based AI orchestration – For prompt chaining and bulk generation

The venture capital landscape is evolving fast, and founders who don't adapt will be left behind. Roy Luo, General Partner at ICONIQ Growth, shares insights on the shifting dynamics of startup funding and what it takes to scale in 2025. With investments in companies like Figma, Canva and Ramp, Roy breaks down key trends in fintech, AI-driven business models and the future of venture capital.Specifically, Roy discusses: (06:46) TCV provided key lessons in investing, founder relations and tech disruption.(11:25) How AI is transforming startups and the VC landscape.(17:00) How to evaluate product-market fit beyond just revenue metrics.(24:45) The importance of strong investor-founder alignment in building long-term partnerships.(37:44) Buyer pain points and trends guide investment decisions.(41:03) Lessons from high-growth investments like Ramp and FloQwcast.(53:04) The characteristics of successful startups and the importance of founder-market fit.(57:06) How identity and anti-fraud solutions are shaping the next wave of fintech.Resources Mentioned:Roy Luohttps://www.linkedin.com/in/roybluo/ICONIQ Growth | LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/iconiq-capital-llc/ICONIQ Growth | Websitehttps://www.iconiqcapital.com/growthThis episode is brought to you by:Leverage community-led growth to skyrocket your business. “From Grassroots to Greatness” by author Lloyed Lobo will help you master 13 game-changing rules from some of the most iconic brands in the world — like Apple, Atlassian, CrossFit, Harley-Davidson, HubSpot, Red Bull and many more — to attract superfans of your own that will propel you to new heights. Grab your copy today at FromGrassrootsToGreatness.com.Each year the US and Canadian governments provide more than $20 billion in R&D tax credits and innovation incentives to fund businesses. But the application process is cumbersome, prone to costly audits, and receiving the money can take as long as 16 months. Boast automates this process, enabling companies to get more money faster without the paperwork and audit risk. We don't get paid until you do! Find out if you qualify today at https://Boast.AI.Launch Academy is one of the top global tech hubs for international entrepreneurs and a designated organization for Canada's Startup Visa. Since 2012, Launch has worked with more than 6,000 entrepreneurs from over 100 countries, of which 300 have grown their startups to seed and Series A stage and raised over $2 billion in funding. To learn more about Launch's programs or the Canadian Startup Visa, visit https://LaunchAcademy.ca.Content Allies helps B2B companies build revenue-generating podcasts. We recommend them to any B2B company that is looking to launch or streamline its podcast production. Learn more at https://contentallies.com.#VentureCapital #StartupFunding #Fintech #Product #Marketing #Innovation #StartUp #GenerativeAI #AI

In this episode, we break down how we plan, execute, and analyze our go-to-market (GTM) campaigns. We walk through the full product launch process for our DTC brands, from the initial product brief to strategy development, creative asset production, cross-functional collaboration, and post-mortem analysis. We share how we tier our launches, how different teams contribute (from product marketing to paid media), and the systems we use to keep everything moving, including ClickUp, Figma, and Notion. We also review our go-to-market boards in real time, showing how we centralize assets, messaging, and strategy across every channel to run high-impact, cohesive campaigns.Finally, we dive into how we're starting to use AI, especially in copywriting workflows, and where human creativity still plays a critical role.If you have a question for the MOperators Hotline, click the link to be in with a chance of it being discussed on the show: https://forms.gle/1W7nKoNK5Zakm1Xv600:00 Introduction05:22 Defining Go-To-Market Strategies12:03 The Product Prequel Process17:15 Attribution Models and Their Impact20:22 Understanding Product Launch Tiers23:39 Collaboration Between Product and Marketing Teams29:12 Creating Cohesive Marketing Messaging35:46 The Role of Project Management in Marketing39:09 Post-Mortem Analysis for Continuous Improvement45:43 Centralizing Project Management Functions48:36 Go-To-Market Strategy and Execution55:27 Comprehensive Creative Briefs for Launches58:14 Centralizing Creative Assets01:02:56 Brand vs. Product Messaging01:05:39 Design Toolkits for Cohesive Branding01:11:02 Creative Problem Solving with Existing Assets01:15:24 Leveraging AI for Content Creation01:19:09 Establishing a Design System01:22:01 Iterating on Go-to-Market StrategiesOperators Exclusive Slack: https://join.slack.com/t/9operators/shared_invite/zt-2tdfu426r-TepSHJP~evAyDfR29U2qUw Powered by:Motion.⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/pricing?utm_source=marketing-operators-podcast&utm_medium=paidsponsor&utm_campaign=march-2024-ad-reads⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/creative-trendsPrescient AI.⁠⁠⁠https://www.prescientai.com/operatorsRichpanel.⁠⁠⁠https://www.richpanel.com/?utm_source=MO&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ytdescAftersell.https://www.aftersell.com/operatorsNorthbeam.https://www.northbeam.io/Subscribe to the 9 Operators Podcast here:https://www.youtube.com/@Operators9Subscribe to the Finance Operators Podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/@FinanceOperatorsFOPSSign up to the 9 Operators newsletter here: https://9operators.com/

Our 209th episode with a summary and discussion of last week's big AI news! Recorded on 05/16/2025 Hosted by Andrey Kurenkov and Jeremie Harris. Feel free to email us your questions and feedback at contact@lastweekinai.com and/or hello@gladstone.ai Read out our text newsletter and comment on the podcast at https://lastweekin.ai/. Join our Discord here! https://discord.gg/nTyezGSKwP In this episode: OpenAI has decided not to transition from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity, instead opting to become a public benefit corporation influenced by legal and civic discussions. Trump administration meetings with Saudi Arabia and the UAE have opened floodgates for AI deals, leading to partnerships with companies like Nvidia and aiming to bolster AI infrastructure in the Middle East. DeepMind introduced Alpha Evolve, a new coding agent designed for scientific and algorithmic discovery, showing improvements in automated code generation and efficiency. OpenAI pledges greater transparency in AI safety by launching the Safety Evaluations Hub, a platform showcasing various safety test results for their models. Timestamps + Links: (00:00:00) Intro / Banter (00:01:41) News Preview (00:02:26) Response to listener comments Applications & Business (00:03:00) OpenAI says non-profit will remain in control after backlash (00:13:23) Microsoft Moves to Protect Its Turf as OpenAI Turns Into Rival (00:18:07) TSMC's 2nm Process Said to Witness ‘Unprecedented' Demand, Exceeding 3nm Due to Interest from Apple, NVIDIA, AMD, & Many Others (00:21:42) NVIDIA's Global Headquarters Will Be In Taiwan, With CEO Huang Set To Announce Site Next Week, Says Report (00:23:58) CoreWeave in Talks for $1.5 Billion Debt Deal 6 Weeks After IPO Tools & Apps (00:26:39) The Day Grok Told Everyone About ‘White Genocide' (00:32:58) Figma releases new AI-powered tools for creating sites, app prototypes, and marketing assets (00:36:12) Google's bringing Gemini to your car with Android Auto (00:38:49) Google debuts an updated Gemini 2.5 Pro AI model ahead of I/O (00:45:09) Hugging Face releases a free Operator-like agentic AI tool Projects & Open Source (00:47:42) Stability AI releases an audio-generating model that can run on smartphones (00:50:47) Freepik releases an ‘open' AI image generator trained on licensed data (00:54:22) AM-Thinking-v1: Advancing the Frontier of Reasoning at 32B Scale (01:01:29) BLIP3-o: A Family of Fully Open Unified Multimodal Models-Architecture, Training and Dataset Research & Advancements (01:05:40) DeepMind claims its newest AI tool is a whiz at math and science problems (01:12:31) Absolute Zero: Reinforced Self-play Reasoning with Zero Data (01:19:44) How far can reasoning models scale? (01:26:47) HealthBench: Evaluating Large Language Models Towards Improved Human Health Policy & Safety (01:34:10) Trump administration officially rescinds Biden's AI diffusion rules (01:37:08) Trump's Mideast Visit Opens Floodgate of AI Deals Led by Nvidia (01:44:04) Scaling Laws For Scalable Oversight (01:49:43) OpenAI pledges to publish AI safety test results more often

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.Follow Sarah on: LinkedIn | YouTube | InstagramIn this special open house episode, Sarah Doody chats with Joshua, a UX design leader with over 20 years of experience, about the reality of navigating a job search after a long career in enterprise environments. Josh opens up about the challenges of staying relevant in a shifting industry, rebuilding his confidence after burnout, and reframing what it means to craft a compelling portfolio—even without flashy Figma work.What You'll Learn in This Episode:✔️ How Josh is positioning himself for a new chapter after 20+ years in UX✔️ Why your portfolio doesn't need to be visual to be powerful✔️ The mindset shift that helped Josh regain clarity and momentum✔️ How asking former colleagues for feedback transformed his self-perception✔️ What it looks like to find leadership roles that align with your values✔️ Tips on managing your time, energy, and expectations in the job searchTimestamps:00:20 Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast00:58 Episode Overview and Listener Engagement01:43 Meet Josh Vaughn: UX Design Leader02:33 Josh's Career Journey and Challenges04:53 The Importance of Storytelling in Portfolios06:45 Building Confidence and Career Strategy11:55 Reflecting on Career Strategy Lab13:23 Final Thoughts and Advice14:51 Conclusion and Farewell16:05 Podcast Outro⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

Yuhki Yamashita is the Chief Product Officer at Figma, where he leads the development of one of the world's most beloved design platforms. Previously, he was Head of Product at Uber, overseeing the core rider experience used by millions globally. A master of product storytelling and team-building, Yuhki has redefined how world-class digital products are built and scaled. Items Mentioned in Today's Episode:  04:30 – "Simple is Lazy?" — Yuhki Challenges Product Dogma 07:45 – The Secret Behind Figma's New Product Ideas (Hint: Users Hack It First) 09:00 – From Hack Week to Roadmap: How New Figma Products Are Born 10:00 – Are PRDs Dead? Yuhki's Spicy Take on the Death of Specs 12:30 – The ‘Screenshot Test': Can Your Product Explain Itself in 1 Frame? 14:15 – Code Layers and ‘Living Designs'—This Demo Blew Everyone's Mind 15:30 – Designers vs Coders: Who Really Owns the Future of Product? 17:45 – The Most Controversial Product Decision Inside Figma 19:00 – Why Figma's Org Structure Could Kill the PM Role (For Real) 21:00 – Should Everyone Be a Designer and a Builder Now? 23:15 – Will Figma Have Fewer Engineers in 5 Years? 24:00 – Cursor, Windsurf & AI Coding Tools—What Figma Engineers Really Use 25:30 – AI's Dual Power: Lowering the Floor, Raising the Ceiling 27:00 – Figma's Biggest Product Flop? Yuhki Owns It 29:30 – The Magic of Product Storytelling—Even for Boring Compliance Tools 31:00 – Why Joy Must Be in the Product (and How Figma Bakes It In) 33:00 – Does Product Market Fit Even Mean Anything in 2025? 35:30 – Is Great Design Enough? Or Is It ALL About Distribution? 37:15 – Dylan's Secret to Early Growth: Hacking Design Twitter 39:00 – Community Mistakes Startups Keep Making 41:00 – The One Thing Yuhki Wishes He Could Change at Figma 43:00 – Should They Have Launched 4 Products at Once? Time Will Tell 45:00 – When Do You Know a New Product Is Doomed? 46:30 – Why Designers Still Don't Ship What They Design (and How to Fix It) 48:00 – From Uber to Figma: Yuhki's Playbook for Massive Product Swings 53:00 – The Adobe Deal Breakup—How Figma Rallied 56:00 – What Yuhki Needs to Improve as a Leader (His Own Feedback Review) 58:00 – The Product Leader He Admires Most—and Why 59:30 – What Figma Still Gets Wrong About Product Culture Please read the offering circular and related risks at invest.modemobile.com. This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile's Regulation A+ Offering. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Investing in private company securities is not suitable for all investors because it is highly speculative and involves a high degree of risk. It should only be considered a long-term investment. You must be prepared to withstand a total loss of your investment. Private company securities are also highly illiquid, and there is no guarantee that a market will develop for such securities. DealMaker Securities LLC, a registered broker-dealer, and member of FINRA | SIPC, located at 105 Maxess Road, Suite 124, Melville, NY 11747, is the Intermediary for this offering and is not an affiliate of or connected with the Issuer. Please check our background on FINRA's BrokerCheck.

Dmitry Zlokazov is the head of product at Revolut, the $45 billion fintech giant operating in over 50 countries, serving more than 50 million customers, and producing some of the world's top product leaders. Dmitry shares his hard-won lessons, contrarian org design principles, and day-to-day practices that power Revolut's relentless shipping velocity, culture of ownership, and unparalleled “wow” product experience.What you'll learn:1. Revolut's unique organizational approach, where “product owners” manage cross-functional pods as “local CEOs,” with genuine end-to-end ownership and hiring/firing power2. How a radical, ultra-flat structure enables more than 150 product owners to maintain founder-level quality and velocity across dozens of parallel launches3. How Revolut maintains quality while shipping hundreds of features across over 50 countries4. Why Revolut favors “raw intellect and hunger” over experience, and how internal transfers (including ex-engineers and ops managers) become the company's most successful product leaders5. How Revolut's founders review every single UI shipped, and why this founder detail obsession scales rather than limits innovation6. Their framework for launching new products—from ideation, validation, and first user cohort to rapid “algorithmization” and scaling across countries7. The importance of treating products that are 99% done as closer to 0% done, vs. 100% done—This entire episode is brought to you by Stripe—Helping companies of all sizes grow revenue.—Where to find Dmitry Zlokazov:• X: https://x.com/Dzlokazov• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zlokazov/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Dmitry and Revolut(03:41) Revolut's unique approach to product management(06:58) The role and responsibilities of product owners(09:28) Types of product owners at Revolut(15:50) Building “wow” products(25:00) Hiring practices(31:33) Managing teams and projects(41:07) Revolut's diverse product offerings(44:40) Scaling new products successfully(52:10) Attracting top talent(58:43) Failure corner(01:02:49) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• Revolut: https://www.revolut.com/• Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/• Palantir: https://www.palantir.com/• Which companies produce the best product managers: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/which-companies-produce-the-best• Which companies accelerate PM careers most: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/which-companies-accelerate-your-pm• Deliver WOW to our customers: https://www.revolut.com/blog/post/deliver-wow/• Nik Storonsky on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nstoronsky• Vlad Yatsenko on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yatsenko/• How Palantir built the ultimate founder factory | Nabeel S. Qureshi (entrepreneur and writer, ex-Palantir): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-palantir-nabeel-qureshi• Gokul Rajaram on designing your product development process, when and how to hire your first PM, a playbook for hiring leaders, getting ahead in you career, how to get started angel investing, more: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/gokul-rajaram-on-designing-your-product• Gokul Rajaram on X: https://x.com/gokulr• Brian Chesky's new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach• Schlep blindness: https://www.paulgraham.com/schlep.html• Revolut Launches RevPoints Loyalty Programme, Turning Daily Expenses into Exclusive Rewards: https://www.revolut.com/news/revolut_launches_revpoints_loyalty_programme_turning_daily_expenses_into_exclusive_rewards/• Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/• ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/• Figma: https://www.figma.com/• Oppenheimer: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15398776/• Manus: https://manus.im/• Eisenhower quote: https://quoteinvestigator.com/2017/11/18/planning/• Wealth protection: https://help.revolut.com/help/security-logging-in/wealth-protection/what-is-wealth-protection/—Recommended books:• The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business when There Are No Easy Answers―Straight Talk on the Challenges of Entrepreneurship: https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Thing-About-Things-Building/dp/0062273205• Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making―Personal Journey from Product Designer to Mentor: https://www.amazon.com/Build-Unorthodox-Guide-Making-Things/dp/0063046067—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Explore how psychology drives effective UX design. Learn practical methods for integrating psychological principles into your design process and gain insights into ethical considerations and storytelling techniques.Why do some apps just "feel right," while others completely miss the mark?Maybe psychology is the missing ingredient in your UX toolkit.Today, I sit down with a UX veteran who has spent years decoding the hidden psychology behind successful design. My guest has crafted user experiences for powerhouse brands like Estée Lauder and Sleep Number, translating user psychology into multimillion-dollar successes. We discuss the critical psychological principles that UX designers often overlook—principles that separate the unforgettable from the easily ignored.We explore why something as subtle as the direction of a model's gaze can drastically change user behavior, how color psychology isn't just a theory but is measurable through rigorous A/B tests, and how storytelling shapes user engagement and stakeholder buy-in. We also offer practical advice for UX designers on ethically using psychological insights without descending into manipulative dark patterns.If you've ever questioned why users behave as they do, or how you can leverage human psychology to create better designs, this episode will equip you with powerful insights and actionable techniques. Don't miss this eye-opening conversation that could fundamentally change how you approach UX design.Topics:• 02:34 - The Importance of Psychology in UX Design• 04:01 - Psychology in Design: Real-World Applications• 05:20 - The Role of Color in UX Design• 06:47 - Understanding User Behavior Through Testing• 08:01 - Ethics in UX Design• 09:33 - The Power of Storytelling in UX• 17:10 - The Role of Faces and Eye Tracking in Design• 23:06 - The Importance of Visual Design Principles• 33:49 - Storytelling: A Fundamental Human Experience• 40:13 - Book Review: Bending Reality• 40:54 - Storytelling in UX Design• 41:41 - Practical Applications of Storytelling at Work• 42:36 - Effective Communication Strategies• 45:13 - Psychology and Gender in the Workplace• 50:23 - Ethical Implications in DesignHelpful Links:• ⁠Connect with Mara on LinkedIn⁠---Support our sponsors!Ok web designers. Let's talk about the “c” word—creative burnout.You're working on a site for a really big client, but between resourcing, feedback, tight budgets and even tighter deadlines—it doesn't make the cut. Wix Studio helps close that gap, so you can deliver your vision with less friction. Built for agencies and enterprises, you get total creative control over every last pixel. With no-code animations, AI-powered tools, reusable design assets, advanced, intuitive layout tools and a Figma to Wix Studio integration, you can design the way you want to and deliver when you need to.And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have—don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running.For your next project, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wixstudio.com

This week in the guest chair we have Raven Gibson, multidisciplinary designer and founder of the empowering apparel and lifestyle brand Legendary Roots. Getting her start in her dorm room, Raven takes us on her journey of delegation, negotiating with Fortune 500 retailers, and trusting that what's for you will never pass you by.In this episode she shares:How she uses art to speak up and invites her community to set healthy boundariesThe moment she got serious about QuickBooks, hired a CPA, learned her metrics, and embraced FIRE principles to build a sustainable, profitable business.The systems that keep burnout at bay, and her gratitude‑driven approach to growthHighlights include: 00:00 Intro3:50 Shifting from medicine to art10:00 Scaling a side hustle20:00 Importance of early support24:00 Managing and learning business finance33:00 Marketing strategies39:00 Retail partnerships43:00 Maintaining a work/life balance52:00 Tips for entrepreneurs Watch episode 462 on YouTube and listen on all podcast appsLinks mentioned in this episodeLegendary Rootz website – https://legendaryrootz.com Instagram / TikTok / Threads – @legendaryrootzTarget – https://www.target.com Shopify – https://www.shopify.com PayPal – https://www.paypal.com Figma – https://www.figma.com ClickUp – https://www.clickup.com QuickBooks – https://quickbooks.intuit.com Tumblr – https://www.tumblr.com Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes – https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Year-of-Yes/Shonda-Rhimes/9781476777122 Click here to subscribe via RSS feed (non-iTunes feed): http://sidehustlepro.libsyn.com/rssAnnouncementsJoin our Facebook CommunityIf you're looking for a community of supportive side hustlers who are all working to take our businesses to the next level, join us here: http://sidehustlepro.co/facebookGuest Social Media InfoSide Hustle Pro – @sidehustlepro#SideHustlePro Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

YouTubeとSpotifyでビデオポッドキャスト公開中＜目次＞(0:00) FigmaのConfigにやってきた!(5:30) Stripe Sessionsも隣で開催中(7:11) Severanceやメタの人も(9:02)テック企業の発表会もっと増える？(13:44) 久しぶりのサンフランシスコどうだった？(14:58)Stripeオフィスがやばかった(17:36) サンフランシスコで会った面白い人たち(21:43) FigmaとStripeのファンの熱量(24:33)Figma Make発表者が知り合いだった(25:58) TikTokでバズってるFruit Riot食べてみた(28:37) チポトレ宮武カスタムやってみたが…(30:50)Figmaの文化(33:40) Behind the Scenes＜About Off Topic＞Podcast:Apple - https://apple.co/2UZCQwzSpotify - https://spoti.fi/2JakzKmOff Topic Clubhttps://note.com/offtopic/membershipX - https://twitter.com/OffTopicJP草野ミキ:https://twitter.com/mikikusanohttps://www.instagram.com/mikikusano宮武テツロー: https://twitter.com/tmiyatake1

Figma a dévoilé 3 produits et 2 features majeurs en 1 soirée, voici un récap condensé ainsi que mes premiers retours d'expérience à chaud !

Show DescriptionHow much would you pay for new users, initial thoughts on Figma's announcements, CSS carousel follow up, favicon easter eggs, how do you prepare for an internship, and why aren't more developers using logical properties? Listen on Website →Links Windsurf (formerly Codeium) - The most powerful AI Code Editor Figma Sites Figma Make Figjam Are CSS Carousels Accessible? Windsurf (formerly Codeium) - The most powerful AI Code Editor Figma Sites: Design, Prototype & Publish Your Next Website Creative Design Tools Collaborative Whiteboard Presentation Creation AI-Powered Design Tools Learn to Code Faster Introducing Web Awesome Prioritization Advocacy axe Accessibility Tools Todoist Task Management Sponsors

Node is back in the news with some noteworthy updates as v24 drops. It gets an upgrade to 13.6 for its V8 JavaScript engine, runs with npm version 11, and has more efficient implementation of the local storage API and test runner updates.Google has released its newest version of its Gemini AI model: Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview (I/O Edition), which claims to be the best model for front-end and UI development. To prove it, Google links to a site called the WebDev Arena (where Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview ranks #1), that lets users put in a prompt and then pits different AI models head to head to build a site based on the prompt. Figma just had their 2025 Config conference and unveiled a host of new offerings, including Figma Sites that lets folks design, prototype and publish with Figma, and Figma Make the AI prompting tool that can add functionality to a Figma mockup via natural language directions.News:Paige - Node 24 updatesJack - Figma Make and Figma Sites and conference demo videoTJ - Gemini 2.5 updates and WebDev ArenaBonus News:Take the first annual State of Devs surveyOpenAI agrees to buy Windsurf for $3BFire Starters:CSS reading-flow and reading-orderWhat Makes Us Happy this Week:Paige - Old Town Trolley ToursJack -  The Residence TV showTJ - ChatGPT helping with camera & video setupThanks as always to our sponsor, the Blue Collar Coder channel on YouTube. You can join us in our Discord channel, explore our website and reach us via email, or talk to us on X, Bluesky, or YouTube.Front-end Fire websiteBlue Collar Coder on YouTubeBlue Collar Coder on DiscordReach out via emailTweet at us on X @front_end_fireFollow us on Bluesky @front-end-fire.comSubscribe to our YouTube channel @Front-EndFirePodcast

Shawn O'Malley and Daniel Mahncke break down Adobe (ticker: ADBE), a leading software company providing end-to-end solutions for creative professionals, from design and creation to marketing and performance measurement. Through apps like Photoshop and After Effects, Adobe offers an industry-leading suite of productivity tools for creatives, including freelancers designers, Hollywood design studios, and everyone inbetween. Excel is to the financial world as Adobe is to the creative world, you might say. In this episode, you'll learn how Adobe grew out of a garage and became tangled with Apple early on, how the company transitioned to a cloud-based subscription model, whether AI risks to Adobe's business are overstated, how Adobe is implementing AI into its tool, whether Adobe is as attractively valued as it seems, plus so much more! Prefer to watch? Click ⁠⁠here⁠⁠ to watch this episode on YouTube. IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL LEARN 00:00 - Intro 00:43 - Adobe's origin story and how it was created out of a garage. 07:24 - What were Adobe's first few popular products and how Apple elevated Adobe's business. 16:02 - Why Adobe transitioned to a subscription-based business model in 2013. 19:36 - Why the market has soured on Adobe's otherwise wonderfully profitable and growing business. 24:40 - How Adobe is responding to Canva, Figma, and disruptions from AI. 39:32 - What Adobe is doing to keep the next generation of designers using its products. 01:04:50 - The biggest risks to Adobe's continued dominance. 01:07:41 - Whether Adobe is attractively valued at its current beaten down levels. 01:16:22 - Whether Shawn & Daniel add ADBE to The Intrinsic Value Portfolio. And much, much more! *Disclaimer: Slight timestamp discrepancies may occur due to podcast platform differences. BOOKS AND RESOURCES Get smarter about valuing businesses in just a few minutes each week through our newsletter, ⁠⁠The Intrinsic Value Newsletter⁠⁠. From Quartr's Insights blog: Adobe: Equipping the Architects of Digital Expression. Adobe's Investor Day Summit. Value Investor's Club pitch for Adobe. Never Sell podcast on Adobe. Check out our previous Intrinsic Value breakdowns: ⁠⁠Nintendo⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Airbnb⁠⁠, ⁠⁠AutoZone⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Alphabet⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Ulta⁠⁠, ⁠⁠John Deere⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠Madison Square Garden Sports⁠⁠. Check out the books mentioned in the podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Enjoy ad-free episodes when you subscribe to our ⁠⁠Premium Feed⁠⁠. NEW TO THE SHOW? Follow our official social media accounts: ⁠⁠X (Twitter)⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠. Browse through all our episodes (complete with transcripts) ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Try Shawn's favorite tool for picking stock winners and managing our portfolios: ⁠⁠TIP Finance⁠⁠. Enjoy exclusive perks from our ⁠⁠favorite Apps and Services⁠⁠. Learn how to better start, manage, and grow your business with the ⁠⁠best business podcasts⁠⁠. SPONSORS Support our free podcast by supporting our ⁠⁠sponsors⁠⁠:⁠⁠ CFI Education Airbnb Connect with Shawn: ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Email⁠⁠ Connect with Daniel: ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Email⁠⁠ HELP US OUT! Help us reach new listeners by leaving us a ⁠⁠rating and review⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠! It takes less than 30 seconds and really helps our show grow, which allows us to bring on even better guests for you all! Thank you – we really appreciate it!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://theinvestorspodcastnetwork.supportingcast.fm

In this 'Quick One' episode, Barry and Phil give their take on all the major announcements from Config, Figma's annual conference held at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. This year's Config featured 4 major product releases: Figma Sites, Figma Make, Figma Draw, and Figma Buzz. They also announced Grids with Auto Layout, CMS for their Sites product, and Code Blocks. Barry and Phil discuss how all these new features, taken together, are both a boon to Design and to Designers, but also might be much ado about nothing in the age of Agentic Experiences. Enjoy!Drinks: Devil's Purse Brewing Co. Handline Kolsch, The Drowned Lands Brewery Green Yield Hazy IPALinks: https://config.figma.com/

Bu bölümde Apple'ın App Store için yaptığı zorunlu değişiklik, Config 2025, HBO'nun The Pitt dizisi, Mert'in Xbox deneyimi ve Blue Prince oyunu üzerine sohbet ettik.Bizi dinlemekten keyif alıyorsanız, kahve ısmarlayarak bizi destekleyebilir ve Telegram grubumuza katılabilirsiniz. :)Yorumlarınızı, sorularınızı ya da sponsorluk tekliflerinizi info@farklidusun.net e-posta adresine iletebilirsiniz.Zaman damgaları:00:00 - Müzeler17:34 - App Store'da Bir Devrin Sonu53:28 - Config 20251:08:30 - İzlediklerimiz, The Pitt1:24:44 - Okuduklarımız1:41:18 - Xbox, Blue Prince1:50:19 - Haftanın albümleriBölüm linkleri:MonoforLange Nacht der Museen HamburgALTONAER MUSEUMMUSEUM AM ROTHENBAUM - KULTUREN UND KÜNSTE DER WELT (MARKK)SPEICHERSTADTMUSEUMKAFFEEMUSEUM BURGA judge just blew up Apple's control of the App StoreEddy Cue is fighting to save Apple's $20 billion paycheck from GoogleAt the Epic trial, Phil Schiller got away cleanApple Reports 2Q 2025 Results: $24.8B Profit on $95.4B RevenueA conversation with Jony IveiPadOS 19 Will Be 'More Like macOS' in Three WaysApple Partners With Anthropic for Claude-Powered AI Coding PlatformConfig 2025: Figma product launch keynoteThe PittThey Remade the Battle of Helm's Deep in a Hospital Show, and It's InsaneAndorThe Internet of UsThe InvincibleCareless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost IdealismFacebook Allegedly Detected When Teen Girls Deleted Selfies So It Could Serve Them Beauty AdsBlue PrinceExpedition: 33Scheherazade and Other Stories“Star Wars” by Bang Bang Robot (1977)

Como lo sospechábamos, Grand Theft Auto, GTA VI, se retrara para el 2026. Pero eso no evitó que Rockstar nos presumiera lo que pueden hacer con el nuevo juego.Hablamos mucho de Expedition 33, Gears of War que llega a PlayStation 5. Además del lado de tecnología nos preparamos para el delgado Galaxy S25 Edge, Google I/O y muchas novedades que presentó Figma durante Config

「Google、Androidの新デザイン『Material 3 Expressive』を誤って公開」Googleは、Androidの次期デザイン「Material 3 Expressive」の詳細を誤ってブログ投稿で公開し、その後すぐに削除しました。このデザインは、ユーザーインターフェースをより魅力的で使いやすくすることを目的としています。「Google、映画・テレビ業界に進出し、若者向けにテクノロジーのイメージ向上を図る」Googleは、映画やテレビ番組の制作を通じて自社のテクノロジーとブランドイメージを強化するため、新たな取り組み「100 Zeros」を開始しました。「Figma、AI活用の新機能群『Sites』『Make』『Buzz』『Draw』を発表」Figmaは、2025年5月7日に開催された「Config」イベントにて、AIを活用した4つの新機能「Figma Sites」「Figma Make」「Figma Buzz」「Figma Draw」を発表しました。これにより、FigmaはAdobe、WordPress、Canvaなどの競合と直接競争する、包括的なプロダクトデザインプラットフォームを目指しています。「Kindleで電子書籍の直接購入が可能に」Amazonは、Kindleユーザーがデバイス上から直接電子書籍を購入できる機能を導入し、長年の制限がついに解消されました。「Samsung、超薄型フラッグシップ『Galaxy S25 Edge』を5月12日に発表へ」Samsungは、2025年5月12日（月）午後8時（米国東部時間）に開催されるバーチャルイベント「Galaxy Unpacked」にて、超薄型フラッグシップスマートフォン「Galaxy S25 Edge」を正式に発表すると明らかにしました。「DJI、初の360度カメラ『Osmo 360』のプロトタイプがリーク」DJIの初となる360度カメラ「Osmo 360」のプロトタイプ画像がリークされ、同社がInsta360やGoPro Max 2と競合する可能性が浮上しています。「NBAのラッセル・ウェストブルック、AIを活用した葬儀計画スタートアップを立ち上げ」NBAのスーパースター、ラッセル・ウェストブルックは水曜日、人工知能技術を使って葬儀の計画を効率化することを目指す新たなスタートアップ企業を立ち上げました。「わざと蛇に噛まれる男」= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =【ユカスタポッドキャスト // Podcast by Yuka Studio】ユカスタポッドキャストは、テックとクリエイティビティがもっと身近になる、トーク番組です。ニューヨークを拠点に、テック系クリエイターとして活動する大石結花がメインホストとして、テックニュースや、インタビューコンテンツをお届けします。

Because it was PJ's first Config, we decided to record a live, IRL episode, recap our first thoughts about the new product releases and a thread that we started about who Figma is designing for, dating back from last year's event.

Sports Geek Rapid Rundown is a daily sports business podcast curated by Sports Geek Reads. We publish it on Sports Geek twice per week. In this episode: Explore Disney's strategic expansion into Abu Dhabi, Next Level Racing's groundbreaking haptic gaming innovation, Real Madrid topping soccer valuations at $6.53 billion, and Figma's new AI-powered design-to-code technology - all curated by Sports Geek Reads. Subscribe at https://sportsgeekhq.com/rapidrundown.

I'm joined by the imaginative Kyle Zantos, a Seattle-based designer, builder, and musician with over a decade of experience across UX, product, and brand. Kyle's worked at startups and consultancies, but lately he's been diving into AI through deeply personal, playful projects that blend creativity, tooling, and experimentation.We get into:* Why he shifted from music to design, and now from design to building AI tools* How he used AI to build a Figma plugin without any coding background* The tools in his AI stack and how he actually uses them (Claude, Cursor, Lovable, Vercel, and more)* What MCPs are and how they help Claude "remember" his context across chats* Why rapid prototyping now beats hours in Figma* His framework of “Software as a Gift,” building custom apps just for friends* A look at the Jeopardy-inspired app he built for his trivia-loving best friendKyle brings curiosity, technical scrappiness, and real heart to everything he builds. Whether you're a designer figuring out how to start with AI or just looking to rekindle some joy in your craft, this one's for you.Timestamps00:00 Introduction02:07 Kyle's musical interests and background06:41 Kyle's journey into "vibe coding"13:02 From an early course to building som ething functional20:59 Leveraging MCPs to build smarter26:26 Software as a gift36:49 Where AI has influenced Kyle's design process38:59 How can design org incentivize to close the skills gap41:29 How to get started with AI43:15 ClosingFollow Kyle* Website: https://kylezantos.com* Twitter: https://twitter.com/kylezantos* LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylezantosMentions* Jeopardy practice game — Kyle launched (in time for this release)* Claude (by Anthropic) — AI assistant used throughout Kyle's workflow* Cursor — AI-first code editor forked from VS Code* Lovable — No-code AI app builder Kyle uses for software-as-gift experiments* Vercel — Deployment platform for full-stack apps* SuperWhisper — Voice-to-text transcription tool* Ammaar Reshi — Design leader at DeepMind; inspired Kyle's early AI buildsFollow Harrison Wheeler and Technically Speaking* Newsletter* LinkedIn* YouTubeTechnically Speaking is where I share reflections, insights, and conversations to help you lead with confidence, clarity, and community. Are you looking to level up your design leadership and management craft? Spend an hour with me for personalized 1:1 coaching to help you thrive in your role. Get full access to Technically Speaking at technicallyspeakinghw.substack.com/subscribe

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Mig Reyes is the VP of Product Experience at Duolingo (and a design director at Instagram before that).In this episode he shared a behind-the-scenes of how design operates at Duolingo (as well as some harsh truths designers need to hear).Common portfolio review mistakesHow communication skills build influenceMig's strategy behind hiring junior designersHow to succeed in executive product reviewsMig's mandate to raise the design bar at DuolingoHow Mig revamped design management at DuolingoWhy Duolingo changed from “UX” to “Product Experience”a lot moreJacob Nielsen (commented on LinkedIn post)Brett Westervelt (VP of Design at Instagram)Ryan Sims (Chief Design Officer at Duolingo)Luis (CEO of Duolingo)Companies mentioned: Instagram, Airbnb, Coinbase, Meta, OpenAI, Figma

Building a design system is the easy part—getting your team to adopt it is the real challenge. We dive into the hidden elements that make design systems truly successful.What if the real blocker to your design system isn't tooling or design, but trust?This week, I talk with Justin Crews, a senior product designer with a background in film, systems thinking, and complex enterprise UX. We dig into what it actually takes to build design systems that people want to use, not just systems that look good in a pitch deck.Justin shares hard-won lessons from his consulting and in-house roles, where he has helped scale multi-product systems. We discuss the mindset shift from dictating to documenting, and why building alignment across teams is more important than enforcing rules. One of my favorite insights: your design system isn't a product—it's a process.If your components are collecting dust or you've hit a wall with adoption, this episode gives you the strategy and language to rethink what design systems are really for. Hit play and learn how to build systems people actually want to use.Topics:• 02:35 – The Challenge of Design System Adoption• 04:39 – Understanding the Role of Design Systems• 08:17 – When to Start Building a Design System• 18:41 – Documenting vs. Dictating in Design Systems• 24:58 – Managing Stakeholder Expectations• 28:24 – Building a Design System from the Ground Up• 40:13 – Building Team Adoption for New Tools• 40:57 – Creating Designer-Friendly Components• 41:47 – Championing and Showcasing the System• 44:22 – Stakeholder Management and Engagement• 46:42 – Measuring Success of Design SystemsHelpful Links:• Connect with Justin on LinkedIn• justinnn.com---Support our sponsors!Ok web designers. Let's talk about the “c” word—creative burnout.You're working on a site for a really big client, but between resourcing, feedback, tight budgets and even tighter deadlines—it doesn't make the cut. Wix Studio helps close that gap, so you can deliver your vision with less friction. Built for agencies and enterprises, you get total creative control over every last pixel. With no-code animations, AI-powered tools, reusable design assets, advanced, intuitive layout tools and a Figma to Wix Studio integration, you can design the way you want to and deliver when you need to.And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have—don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running.For your next project, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wixstudio.com

Understanding Where You FitIf you're reading this, chances are you're passionate about user experience. But maybe UX isn't actually in your job title. Perhaps you're a marketer, project manager, developer, copywriter, or business analyst who deeply cares about making your products better for users. Or you might be a UX designer or researcher feeling stuck, constantly frustrated trying to advocate for UX in your organization.The reality is that organizations exist at different levels of UX maturity. Some don't value UX at all, others merely pay lip service to it, and many have good intentions but lack a clear strategic direction. Regardless of your exact title or background, what unites us is our shared goal to see UX truly valued and elevated.I've met countless individuals from diverse roles who desperately want to push UX forward, yet feel they're swimming against the current. If this sounds familiar, know you're not alone.UX Leadership Isn't for Everyone (and That's Okay)Let's be honest, UX leadership and strategy aren't for everyone. Many UX designers feel pressure to transition into leadership roles simply to advance their careers, only to find themselves bogged down by endless meetings, organizational politics, and little-to-no time spent on actual design.The truth is, UX leadership isn't about spending more time in Figma or user testing sessions. It's about navigating internal politics, setting strategic directions, and managing upwards, not just downwards. It demands patience, persistence, and the ability to influence and collaborate across departments. It's a marathon, not a sprint.That's not everyone's cup of tea—and that's perfectly fine. There are plenty of alternative paths for growth in UX, whether it's specializing in fintech UX, conversational UX, hybrid roles like UX and Design Ops, or even diving deeper into product-focused UX.Why Choose UX Leadership?But let's say you do feel drawn to leadership. Why step up into this challenging, yet rewarding role?Firstly, you'll gain wider-reaching influence, shaping not just individual designs but your entire organization's approach to user experience. This broader impact can be deeply fulfilling, especially if you're driven by a genuine passion for user-centered design.Secondly, stepping into UX leadership future-proofs your career in an era increasingly influenced by AI. While tactical design tasks might eventually be automated, strategic leadership and decision-making roles will remain secure for years to come.A Special Note for Agency Owners and FreelancersIf you run an agency or work as a freelancer, you might be wondering how UX leadership applies to you. Whether you're currently focused on UI design, web development, or other services, there's a valuable opportunity to evolve into a more strategic advisory role with your clients.By positioning yourself as a UX leader and strategic consultant, you can command higher rates and break free from the typical constraints of project-based work. Instead of simply executing clients' requests, you can help shape their organizational approach to user experience at a fundamental level.This transition isn't easy—it requires building new relationships, developing different skills, and potentially stepping away from the hands-on work you love. But if you're willing to make this journey, it can transform your business. I know this firsthand, as it's the foundation upon which I built my own consultancy.Myths About UX LeadershipThere's a lot of misunderstanding about what UX leadership truly entails. Let's bust a few myths:Myth #1: It's All About the UserMany assume UX leaders exist solely to champion the user's needs. While advocating for users is essential, your primary goal as a UX leader is to drive business value through improved user experiences. If it were only about users, we'd simply give products away for free. That would be great for users, not so great for business.UX leadership connects user needs to clear business outcomes, like increased lifetime value, customer retention, and higher average order values.Myth #2: UX Leadership is Mostly Team ManagementAlthough managing your team matters, your core role involves managing upwards, setting strategic direction, influencing stakeholders, and advocating for user-centered change at an organizational level. Your focus should be strategic, not purely operational.Myth #3: You Need a Fancy TitleYou don't need the official title of UX Leader or Head of Design to lead effectively. Whether you're a developer, marketer, or business analyst, if you're advocating for better UX practices, influencing change, and shaping how your organization thinks about users, you're already acting as a UX leader.Defining Your Role as a UX leaderSo, what exactly does being a UX leader mean?In my experience, it's about five key things:Advocating for Users: Keeping user needs at the forefront.Strategic Facilitation: Guiding and shaping UX vision across the organization.Acting as a Change Agent: Influencing and shifting organizational culture to prioritize UX.Cross-Functional Collaboration: Working effectively with different teams, breaking down silos.Decision-Making Based on User Data: Making informed strategic choices driven by robust user research.This is the essence of UX leadership—no matter your title or current role.Next StepsIn the next email, we're going to redefine your role from what you're currently doing towards what you need to be doing to truly lead UX in your organization. Until then, consider where you fit on this spectrum—are you ready and willing to embrace this challenging but exciting journey?Because if you are, your organization—and its users—will thank you for stepping up.

We are here to take AI Seriously this time, but for real. This is Part 3 of a multi-part series. We want to have a realistic talk about AI and how it relates to UX while avoiding some pitfalls. We have a conversation about step 3 AI which is about doing tasks that experts used to do, but the expert is still involved. We have a detour to talk about profit and Figma.

Send us feedback or episode suggestions.In this episode, TJ Pitre, founder of South Left, joins the podcast to trace the real evolution of digital production — from the early days of Flash and Fireworks to today's dynamic, system-driven workflows. TJ shares his journey bridging design and development, reflects on the rise of modern tools like Figma, and explores the shift toward more connected, production-ready design. Along the way, he breaks down the growing role of the design engineer, the impact of AI on creative workflows, and what the future holds for building smarter, faster digital products.View the transcript of this episode.Check out our upcoming events.If you want to get in touch with the show, ask some questions, or tell us what you think, send us a message over on LinkedIn.GuestTJ Pitre is the founder of South Left, a boutique front-end agency that lives at the intersection of design and development. With roots in illustration, UI design, and engineering, TJ helps teams transform static ideas into dynamic, production-ready systems. He's a passionate advocate for design engineering, smarter workflows, and the evolving future of digital production.HostAndrew Rohman is EVP of Strategy at Knapsack, where he helps enterprises close the gap between design and code and accelerate digital product delivery at scale. He's passionate about building better systems, reducing risk, and creating positive change across teams and organizations.SponsorSponsored by Knapsack, the digital production platform that brings teams together. Learn more at knapsack.cloud.

Episode web page: https://bit.ly/4400s9a ----------------------- Got a question? Want to recommend a guest? Or do you want to tell me how the show can be better?  Send me a voice message via email at podcast@usertesting.com ----------------------- In this episode of Insights Unlocked, Jason Giles, VP of Design at UserTesting, chats with Andrew Hogan, Head of Insights at Figma, about the evolving role of design in the AI era. Fresh off the release of Figma's 2025 AI Report, Andrew shares key takeaways from a survey of 2,500 designers and developers using AI in product development. The conversation covers how teams are shifting from experimentation to evaluating AI's real-world impact, why design is more crucial than ever for AI-powered products, and how successful teams are navigating the contradictions of rapid innovation. They also dive into the rise of agentic AI, the ongoing productivity vs. quality debate, and why tight design-dev collaboration is becoming non-negotiable. Whether you're building the next-gen user experience or exploring how AI fits into your workflow, this episode is packed with insights on making AI work for your team and your users. What you'll learn: Why 52% of builders say design is more important for AI products than traditional ones​ How agentic AI is emerging as the fastest-growing category—and what that means for UX The growing gap between AI's ability to speed up work and its impact on work quality Why “measured momentum” might best describe AI's trajectory in 2025 What high-performing teams do differently: iterate, collaborate, and stay flexible​ Resources & Links: Connect with Andrew Hogan on LinkedIn Andrew's Double Click blog post Connect with Jason Giles on LinkedIn Figma's 2025 AI Report: The year of AI at work Learn more about Insights Unlocked: usertesting.com/podcast

欢迎大家又来收听新一期HCI Insiders！这一期我们邀请到了Adobe的Senior AI/ML Experience Designer Veronica。说起来策划这一季的时候我们还打算做一个“AI”季呢，但最后因为没有信心邀请到足够数量的嘉宾而作罢。当时就想一定要请这位Adobe Firefly的设计师来聊聊Generative AI产品的设计，终于实现了。Vero的教育背景非常耀眼，可以说是跨学科的典范了。她本科在UCLA修读了建筑学、设计与传媒、商业创业三个专业；研究生则是在哈佛大学Graduate School of Design攻读MArch I和MDes Technology，也就是建筑学硕士和设计学硕士双学位，毕业后加入Adobe至今，一直负责AI相关产品的设计，那时候还是ChatGPT尚未爆火的2021年，去年年底她更是在Adobe MAX上发表演讲。我们对她有诸多好奇，从建筑到交互再到专攻AI设计，她是什么时候对AI产品设计产生兴趣的，又是如何进入这个领域并取得一定影响力的呢？时间线：0:00 开始2:05 Veronica本科时为什么想读建筑、传媒还有创业三个专业？学生时期的经历如何影响和塑造了现在的她？父母的影响让Vero从小就对艺术设计和计算机感兴趣。在UCLA学习Design Media Art拓宽了她的视野，让她接触到了各种不同的媒介。一节建筑的暑课让她感受到了空间设计的魅力，三维场景设计的困难是她没想到的，激发了她学习的斗志。商业课程让她了解了如何把想法变成现实，如何驱动产品或者体验的落地。全部结合起来，自然而然就看到了产品设计这个方向，最后都聚合在一起。8:07 在哈佛做Design Studies的时候就接触到了早期AI的体验，做了一些项目。Adobe的AI Designer岗位对Veronica来说是一个非常难得的且极其契合的机会。10:42 在设计AI产品的过程中，设计师如何平衡设计和研究？应该具备哪些AI research的能力？15:25 在Adobe的实际工作中，Vero会花更多时间在figure out long-term business strategy，要想产品更远方向的可能性。“用设计展现用户的需求和产品的前景，用设计的方式去沟通，以此来影响整个商业策略。做设计师时间越长你会发现，最后你的value不是你在Figma里的每个pixel，更多的是你通过这些pixel所communicate出来的价值是什么。当然科技仍然是核心，需要用科技去实现这个产品。”19:05 如果想进入AI产品设计领域，设计师应该怎么自学？其实行业里最新的东西都是从academia出来的，可以读一些论文，关注CHI等research conference，甚至跟code接触一下...28:49 什么时候应该创造新的design pattern，什么时候应该遵循已有的pattern？25:15 Vero介绍自己在Adobe负责过的项目29:22 印象深刻的挑战或者困难，以及怎么克服的：这个领域变化非常迅速，stay up-to-date33:32 如果实际工作中比较少有做AI产品的机会，是不是也还是要强迫自己拥抱AI等等这些最新的产品和技术呢？最好强迫自己尝试一下，或许对你自己的项目也会有帮助～35:29 如何加快职业成长？首先了解你的公司或团队重视设计师的哪些品质，其次是要在能够展现自己的情况下自信地表达想法，不要看低自己。39:28 如何平衡一个产品中AI的能力和用户的自主性？这一期的节目比较短，Veronica本人接下来还有别的安排，我们不好意思占用她更多时间。但我们也觉得这一期节目问的并不是特别好，我们三个还有很多需要准备和需要提高的地方。有什么改进建议也非常希望听众老爷们留言～

In dieser Episode analysieren Matthias und Frede die aktuellen strukturellen Veränderungen der UX-Branche anhand führender Artikel und Reports. Sie besprechen Dan Maccarones Analyse zur Abkehr der UX von strategischer Einflussnahme, Greg Nudelmans Warnung vor der irrelevanten Fokussierung auf Figma und UI in Zeiten von KI und Geoffrey Huntleys Beobachtungen über die Auswirkungen von KI auf Arbeitsmärkte. Dann wird noch in den "Design in Tech Report" von John Maeda reingeschaut, inklusive des neuen Paradigmas "Agent Experience (AX)". Außerdem diskutieren die Hosts die Rückkehr der UX-Generalist*innen laut Nielsen Norman Group, die Priorisierung neuer Kompetenzen im "Future of Jobs Report 2025" sowie Dominique Winters Modell zur Gestaltung langfristiger Mensch-Produkt-Beziehungen. Zum Abschluss liefern Jeff Sauro und Jim Lewis ein neues Framework für die Auswahl der passenden UX-Metriken. ⠀⠀| ⠀⠀| KAPITEL ⠀⠀| [00:00:00] Einstieg: Wie viel Veränderung steht der UX bevor? ⠀⠀| [00:01:49] Dan Maccarone: UX zwischen Strategie und Dekoration ⠀⠀| [00:12:09] Greg Nudelman: KI verändert UX-Design radikal ⠀⠀| [00:19:38] Geoffrey Huntley: Neue Marktmechanismen im KI-Zeitalter ⠀⠀| [00:27:12] John Maeda: AX - Agent Experience als neue Disziplin ⠀⠀| [00:34:27] Nielsen Norman Group: Das Comeback der UX-Generalist*innen ⠀⠀| [00:37:56] Future of Jobs Report 2025: Zukunftskompetenzen für UX ⠀⠀| [00:43:14] Dominique Winter: Produktbeziehungen bewusst gestalten ⠀⠀| [00:49:30] Jeff Sauro & Jim Lewis: Framework für die Auswahl von UX-Metriken ⠀⠀| ⠀⠀| LINKS UND RESSOURCEN: ⠀⠀| https://germanupa.de/mediathek/ux-diesem-monat-april-25 ⠀⠀| ⠀⠀| Erzähle uns: Welche neuen Kompetenzen baust du gerade auf? Dein Feedback erreicht uns per E-Mail podcast@germanupa.de oder direkt in den Kommentaren. ⠀⠀|

Sunsetting features is rarely a celebrated milestone in product, but it's often one of the most critical. In this episode, Ronie Ben Aharon CPO and CTO of Craft.io, joins Lily and Randy to share how his team made the tough call to retire a key feature—and what they learned in the process.Ronie walks us through a real-world example of removing Craft.io's visual spec tool, why trying to compete with established platforms like Figma didn't make sense, and how they approached the transition with both technical rigour and user empathy. He also explains what happens when a sunset strategy goes wrong, and the lingering costs of keeping legacy features alive.Key takeaways- Sunsetting is about creating space for more impactful product work.- Features that seem harmless because they're underused often introduce hidden costs, especially when they complicate onboarding, UX, and development cycles.- Data-related features are the hardest to retire. Plan for thoughtful migration and clear communication with users.- Soft approaches, like “feature starvation,” can backfire and prolong technical debt.- Strong collaboration between product, customer success, and engineering is key to pulling off a successful sunset.Chapters0:00 – Why announcing a feature sunset is rarely met with applause1:58 – What makes sunsetting necessary, and why underused features are a risk5:01 – How to recognise when it's time to kill a feature6:10 – The story behind Craft.io's visual spec feature and why they let it go9:01 – Navigating the difficult conversations with users who still rely on a dying feature12:27 – Handling data migration without compromising user trust14:04 – A sunset that didn't go as planned: learning from the feedback portal misstep22:44 – Managing engineering expectations and avoiding unnecessary rebuilds24:38 – How sunsetting shapes the way new features are designed26:11 – Final reflections on doing it right—and why it's worth itFeatured Link: Follow Roni on LinkedIn | Craft.io | Figma | 'Sunsetting success: How to strategically phase out products in the digital age' feature by Balaji Ananthanpilla and Sabah Qazi at Mind The ProductOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.

Send us a text00:00 - Intro00:24 - Buyer of Rippling at $16b?08:00 - Figma IPO at $21b?21:29 - Humanoid robots run marathon

Why is it taking so long for robots to build our buildings—and what happens when they finally do? Brian Ringley, Distinguished Product Manager at Boston Dynamics, takes us behind the curtain of construction robotics, from his time at WeWork experimenting with site automation to shaping Spot's evolution into a mobile sensor platform. We unpack why the construction industry resists innovation, how real-time data and feedback loops can transform project delivery, and what it takes to align business models with breakthrough tech. From layout bots to prefab ecosystems, this is a deep dive into the future of building.Subscribe to Most Podern on:Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/3zYvX2lRZOpHcZW41WGVrpApple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/most-podern-podcast/id1725756164Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@MostPodernInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/most.podernLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/most-podernKeywordsconstruction robotics, Boston Dynamics, Spot robot, Brian Ringley, mobile robots, digital twins, architecture and automation, construction technology, reality capture, prefab construction, WeWork innovation, laser scanning, field robotics, jobsite automation, building information modeling, modular building, Dusty Robotics, Trimble X7, construction industry disruption, industrial automation, robotic layout, design technology, human-robot collaboration, BIM to manufacturing, intelligent construction systems, Figma for product design, architecture careers in tech, robot dog construction, automation in AEC, construction tech startups, future of buildingChaptersLinksGuest: Brian RingleyBrian Ringley on LinkedInBoston DynamicsSpotReferenced Tools & TechnologiesTrimble X7 Laser ScannerHoloBuilderOpenSpaceFieldlens (by RedTeam)Dusty RoboticsFigmaGrasshopper (for Rhino)Human UI PluginWombat Plugin for GrasshopperMentioned Companies & TeamsWeWorkWoods BagotIntelligent CityMorphosisZahner (Architectural Metal Fabrication)Field AIBooks & IdeasCrossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore – AmazonThe Fall of Rome – Wikipedia

Welcome to another episode of Supra Insider. This time, Marc and Ben sat down with Will Newton, Principal Product Architect at Amplitude—and one of our most popular past guests—for a follow-up conversation on the fast-evolving world of AI tooling in product design and development.In just a few weeks since our last chat, Amplitude has gone from early AI experimentation to giving Bolt licenses to every designer. Will takes us inside this transition and breaks down how AI is changing design workflows, redefining prototyping, and collapsing traditional linear product development.We also get deep on the concept of taste—what it means to produce high-quality work in a world where the UI layer is increasingly commoditized. Plus, a live Bolt demo, the hidden risks of lazy thinking with AI, and why the future belongs to generalists with strong judgment and taste.If you're a PM, designer, or product leader trying to make sense of the new AI-powered stack, this one's for you.All episodes of the podcast are also available on Spotify, Apple and YouTube.New to the pod? Subscribe below to get the next episode in your inbox

With Jess and Sam taking the week off Brit and Dave are joined by two leading voices in venture and tech: Ben Lerer (Managing Partner, Lerer Hippeau) and Morgan Beller (General Partner, NFX; Co-creator of Libra). Together, they dive into the shifting tides of tech, venture, and AI:– OpenAI's next move: A social network?– Venture's broken math– The ‘AI' label inflation, and– Figma's IPO and what it signals for techPlus, Ben and Morgan weigh space travel risks—would you commit to a ticket to Mars?Let us know in the comments below!00:00 Trailer01:16 Guest Intro03:39 VC East Coast scene08:39 Offline from tech10:32 OpenAI social media leak? 15:08 Investing in AI22:59 Like AI companies28:49 Figma's Potentital IPO33:08 LPs and founders are pissed41:52 Pop culture corner: Katy Perry went to space45:02 Humans on Mars by 2040? 46:36 OutroFeaturing: Ben Lerer: https://x.com/benjlererMorgan Beller: https://x.com/bellerWe're also on ↓X: https://twitter.com/moreorlesspodInstagram: https://instagram.com/moreorlessSpotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/moreorlesspodConnect with us here:1) Sam Lessin: https://x.com/lessin2) Dave Morin: https://x.com/davemorin3) Jessica Lessin: https://x.com/Jessicalessin4) Brit Morin: https://x.com/brit

Today's show: Jason, Alex, and Lon discuss Figma's surprise IPO filing following its $1B breakup from Adobe, OpenAI's quiet push into social networking through a Sora image-sharing feed, and how sweeping new China tariffs are wreaking havoc on ecommerce companies—impacting jobs, supply chains, and pricing. Plus: the Substack vs. Patreon battle heats up, Lyft expands internationally, and we talk to the founders of Nerd Crawler and Cuts Clothing about how policy decisions ripple through startup land. A packed show with insights founders can't afford to miss.Timestamps:(0:00) Tariffs impact on ecommerce and CPG(2:22) Figma files to go public and Adobe's billion-dollar breakup fee(6:48) IPO market, competition, and Hammerspace's $100 million raise(9:34) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.(11:32) Patreon's new streaming feature and Substack's growth(19:08) Jason's experience with Patreon and Substack apps(19:33) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://www.linkedin.com/twist(25:58) OpenAI's new social network and Temu's Google Shopping ads shutdown(29:24) Notion - Try it for free today at https://notion.com/twist(37:11) Nerdcrawler's business model and comic book industry economics(42:33) Marketplaces, scaling challenges, and tariff policy impact on startups(47:29) Steven Borrelli's viral tweet on tariffs and administration response(50:26) Effects of tariffs on costs, supply chain, and American manufacturing(57:56) Infrastructure, investment for US production, and potential layoffs(1:02:34) Closing remarks, endorsements, and quality of Cuts clothing(1:04:25) Addressing misconceptions about Asian manufacturing(1:05:00) OpenAI acquisition of Codium and market impact of tariff fears(1:05:52) Critique of tariff policy communication and domestic job creation discussionSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpCheck out:Nerd Crawler: https://nerdcrawler.comCuts: https://www.cutsclothing.com/Follow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:(9:34) Pilot - Visit https://www.pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.(19:33) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://www.linkedin.com/twist(29:24) Notion - Try it for free today at https://notion.com/twistGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.comSubscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

This week, Edward Chechique joins me to discuss rethinking design careers, ditching outdated career advice, and learning how to survive (and thrive) in 2025's chaotic job market. We talk layoffs, AI, content creation, side hustles, and redefining what it means to be a UX pro today.What if your job title doesn't define your career? What if your "career" wasn't the point at all?We were told that if we worked hard, got good at UX, and built a solid portfolio, we'd be fine. But in 2025, none of that seems to be working. In this episode, I sit down with Edward Chechique to talk about what happens when the traditional path to career success just… stops working.Edward has been laid off, ghosted, and judged by hiring managers who didn't get it. So he stopped waiting. He built his own path—from writing and content creation to launching products and teaching others how to use AI to work smarter. This isn't a fairytale story about becoming a millionaire. It's about regaining your agency and deciding what you want from your career.If you're tired of trying to fit into boxes that never seemed to fit quite right, this episode is your permission slip to stop waiting for the industry to come save you—and start building a version of success that actually works for you.Topics:• 02:46 - Redefining Careers in Design• 03:17 - Interview with Edward Chechique• 04:59 - Edward's Journey in Design• 09:10 - Navigating the Job Market• 13:32 - Adapting and Diversifying Skills• 16:24 - Entrepreneurial Mindset and Self-Employment• 27:10 - Challenges and Realities of Self-Employment• 30:38 - Entrepreneurial Upbringing vs. Traditional Employment• 31:55 - Navigating Financial Uncertainty• 33:33 - Saving Strategies and Lifestyle Choices• 38:49 - Cultural Shifts and Economic Impact• 41:42 - Closing ThoughtsHelpful Links:• Connect with Edward on LinkedIn• Watch Edward on YouTube• Follow Edward on Medium---Thanks for listening! We hope you dug today's episode. If you liked what you heard, be sure to like and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts! And if you really enjoyed today's episode, why don't you leave a five-star review? Or tell some friends! It will help us out a ton.If you haven't already, sign up for our email list. We won't spam you. Pinky swear.---Support our sponsors!Ok web designers. Let's talk about the “c” word—creative burnout.You're working on a site for a really big client, but between resourcing, feedback, tight budgets and even tighter deadlines—it doesn't make the cut. Wix Studio helps close that gap, so you can deliver your vision with less friction. Built for agencies and enterprises, you get total creative control over every last pixel. With no-code animations, AI-powered tools, reusable design assets, advanced, intuitive layout tools and a Figma to Wix Studio integration, you can design the way you want to and deliver when you need to.And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have—don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running.For your next project, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wixstudio.com

Today's guest is Neil Mehta, founder of Greenoaks Capital. In 2012, aged 27, Neil left D.E. Shaw to start Greenoaks with his friend Benny Peretz. One of their first investments was in Coupang, a South Korean e-commerce company led by founder Bom Kim. Neil was so convinced of Coupang's potential that he invested 40% of their initial $50 million fund into the company—a bet that eventually returned about $8 billion. Over its first 13 years, Greenoaks has backed legendary companies like Figma, Wiz, Carvana, Stripe, Discord, Rippling, and Toast—generating over $13 billion in gross profits with a 33% net IRR. Henry Kravis, one of Neil's early investors, describes him as "extremely disciplined" with "exceptional timing" who has "gone against the tide many times." Greenoaks operates with remarkable concentration: just 55 core companies across nearly $15 billion in assets, managed by only nine investment professionals. Their approach reflects their singular pursuit: finding companies that will become a meaningful part of the S&P 500. In our wide-ranging conversation, Neil shares this mission along with his framework for identifying exceptional founders, his concept of "jaw-dropping customer experiences," and how his grandfather's gun shop in India shaped his appreciation for builders of all kinds. Please enjoy my excellent conversation with Neil Mehta. Neil Mehta's Profile in Colossus Review. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by Ramp. Ramp's mission is to help companies manage their spend in a way that reduces expenses and frees up time for teams to work on more valuable projects. Go to Ramp.com/invest to sign up for free and get a $250 welcome bonus. – This episode is brought to you by Ridgeline. Ridgeline has built a complete, real-time, modern operating system for investment managers. It handles trading, portfolio management, compliance, customer reporting, and much more through an all-in-one real-time cloud platform. Head to ridgelineapps.com to learn more about the platform. –  This episode is brought to you by AlphaSense. AlphaSense has completely transformed the research process with cutting-edge AI technology and a vast collection of top-tier, reliable business content. Invest Like the Best listeners can get a free trial now at Alpha-Sense.com/Invest and experience firsthand how AlphaSense and Tegus help you make smarter decisions faster. ----- Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Show Notes: (00:00:00) Welcome to Invest Like the Best (00:06:32) Connecting Craftsmanship to Career (00:07:45) The Concept of Jaw Dropping Customer Experience (JDCE) (00:09:48) Building a Successful Business: The Coupang Case Study (00:17:26) The Importance of Founders & Business Models (00:30:05) Greenoaks' Unique Approach to Venture Capital (00:37:54) A Memorable Encounter with Henry Kravis (00:40:52) Early Career and Lessons from Hong Kong (00:44:53) The Partnership with Benny (00:50:28) Navigating the Competitive Landscape (00:59:14) High Conviction Investments: TripActions, Rippling, and Carvana (01:07:00) Investment Strategy and Company Evaluation (01:13:23) Adventures in Emerging Markets (01:17:09) Challenges and Lessons Learned (01:26:16) Personal Values and Community Impact (01:32:16) The Kindest Thing Anyone Has Ever Done For Neil

Today, I'm talking with Natalia Andreyeva from Infor about AI / ML product management and its application to supply chain software. Natalia is a Senior Director of Product Management for the Nexus AI / ML Solution Portfolio, and she walks us through what is new, and what is not, about designing AI capabilities in B2B software. We also got into why user experience is so critical in data-driven products, and the role of design in ensuring AI produces value. During our chat, Natalia hit on the importance of really nailing down customer needs through solid discovery and the role of product leaders in this non-technical work. We also tackled some of the trickier aspects of designing for GenAI, digital assistants, the need to keep efforts strongly grounded in value creation for customers, and how even the best ML-based predictive analytics need to consider UX and the amount of evidence that customers need to believe the recommendations. During this episode, Natalia emphasizes a huge key to her work's success: keeping customers and users in the loop throughout the product development lifecycle.   Highlights/ Skip to What Natalia does as a Senior Director of Product Management for Infor Nexus (1:13) Who are the people using Infor Nexus Products and what do they accomplish when using them (3:01) Breaking down who makes up Natalia's team (4:15) What role does AI play in Natalia's work? (5:42) How do designers work with Natalia's team? (7:27) The problem that had Natalia rethink the discovery process when working with AI and machine learning applications (10:38) Why Natalia isn't worried about competitors catching up to her team's design work (14:34) How Natalia works with Infor Nexus customers to help them understand the solutions her team is building (23:17) The biggest challenges Natalia faces with building GenAI and machine learning products (27:35) Natalia's four steps to success in building AI products and capabilities (35:03) Where you can find more from Natalia (36:59)   Quotes from Today's Episode “I always launch discovery with customers, in the presence of the UX specialist [our designer]. We do the interviews together, and [regardless of who is facilitating] the goal is to understand the pain points of our customers by listening to how they do their jobs today. We do a series of these interviews and we distill them into the customer needs; the problems we need to really address for the customers. And then we start thinking about how to [address these needs]. Data products are a particular challenge because it's not always that you can easily create a UX that would allow users to realize the value they're searching for from the solution. And even if we can deliver it, consuming that is typically a challenge, too. So, this is where [design becomes really important]. [...] What I found through the years of experience is that it's very difficult to explain to people around you what it is that you're building when you're dealing with a data-driven product. Is it a dashboard? Is it a workboard? They understand the word data, but that's not what we are creating. We are creating the actual experience for the outcome that data will deliver to them indirectly, right? So, that's typically how we work.” - Natalia Andreyeva (7:57) “[When doing discovery for products without AI], we already have ideas for what we want to get out. We know that there is a space in the market for those solutions to come to life. We just have to understand where. For AI-driven products, it's not only about [the user's] understanding of the problem or the design, it is also about understanding if the data exists and if it's feasible to build the solution to address [the user's] problem. [Data] feasibility is an extremely important piece because it will drive the UX as well.” - Natalia Andreyeva (11:00) “When [the team] discussed the problem, it sounded like a simple calculation that needed to be created [for users]. In reality, it was an entire process of thinking of multiple people in the chain [of command] to understand whether or not a medical product was safe to be consumed. That's the outcome we needed to produce, and when we finally did, we actually celebrated with our customers and with our designers. It was one of the most difficult things that we had to design. So why did this problem actually get solved, and why we were the ones who solved it? It's because we took the time to understand the current user experience through [our customer] interviews. We connected the dots and translated it all into a visual solution. We would never be able to do that without the proper UX and design in that place for the data.” - Natalia Andreyeva (13:26) “Everybody is pressured to come up with a strategy [for AI] or explain how AI is being incorporated into their solutions and platform, but it is still essential for all of my peers in product management to focus on the value [we're] creating for customers. You cannot bypass discovery. Discovery is the essential portion where you have to spend time with your customers, champions, advisors, and their leads, but especially users who are doing this [supply chain] job every single day—so we understand where the pain point really is for them, we solve that pain, and we solve it with our design team as a partner, so that solution can surface value. ” - Natalia Andreyeva (22:18) “GenAI is a new field and new technology. It's evolving quickly, and nobody really knows how to properly adapt or drive the adoption of AI solutions. The speed of innovation [in the AI field] is a challenge for everybody. People who work on the frontlines (i.e. product, engineering teams), have to stay way ahead of the market. Meanwhile, customers who are going to be using these [AI] solutions are not going to trust the [initial] outcomes. It's going to take some time for people to become comfortable with them. But it doesn't mean that your solution is bad or didn't find the market fit. It's just not time for your [solution] yet. Educating our users on the value of the solution is also part of that challenge, and [designers] have to be very careful that solutions are accessible. Users do not adopt intimidating solutions.” - Natalia Andreyeva (27:51) “First, discovery—where we search for the problems. From my experience, [discovery] works better if you're very structured. I always provide [a customer] with an outline of what needs to happen so it's not a secret. Then, do the prototyping phase and keep the customer engaged so they can see the quick outcomes of those prototypes. This is where you also have to really include the feasibility of the data if you're building an AI solution, right? [Prototyping] can be short or long, but you need to keep the customer engaged throughout that phase so they see quick outcomes. Keep on validating this conceptually, you know, on the napkin, in Figma, it doesn't really matter; you have to keep on keeping them engaged. Then, once you validate it works and the customer likes it, then build. Don't really go into the deep development work until you know [all of this!] When you do build, create a beta solution. It only has to work so much to prove the value. Then, run the pilot, and if it's successful, build the MVP, then launch. It's simple, but it is a lot of work, and you have to keep your customers really engaged through all of those phases. If something doesn't work [along the way], try to pivot early enough so you still have a viable product at the end.” - Natalia Andreyeva (35:03)   Links Natalia's LinkedIn

Flexport was a breakout success—reimagining global trade with tech at its core. But when the freight market cooled and efficiency overtook service, things started to unravel. Founder Ryan Petersen stepped aside, handing the CEO role to former Amazon exec Dave Clark. Months later, he was back at the helm.In this episode, Ryan explains what went wrong, how he's rebuilding Flexport—cutting $300M in costs, restoring customer focus—and why promoting from within beats chasing outside stars. He also weighs in on Trump's proposed tariffs and what they could mean for the future of global trade.Chapters: 00:00 Trailer00:31 Introduction02:07 Meeting smart people, seeing the world03:40 Eroded margins09:52 Charismatic and overconfident15:32 Not an overnight decision20:08 The founder has returned23:10 Redoing the hiring26:38 No substitute for passion31:00 Working for and with my brother37:28 Working with forwarders42:14 Being a founder can be lonely47:49 Life's work54:06 The right person for the job1:00:55 19 countries1:04:57 Blowing people up1:07:24 Work and being a good dad1:08:34 Not doing it for money and loving money1:17:52 Import and export tariffs1:22:57 De minimis1:25:54 Panama and the Suez Canal1:36:50 Going public1:42:24 Who Flexport is Hiring 1:42:42 What "grit" means to Ryan1:43:06 OutroMentioned in this episode: Founders Fund, Amazon, Toyota Motor Corporation, Slack, Brex, Pedro Franceschi, Henrique Dubugras, United States Customs and Border Protection, ImportGenius, Michael Kanko, Y Combinator, Paul Graham, Intel Corporation, Shopify, Geely Holding (Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd.), The Volvo Group, Intuit TurboTax, David Petersen, BuildZoom, TechCrunch, Google, Figma, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Jimmy Carter, Panama Canal Authority, United States Navy, Coinbase, Uber, AirbnbLinks:Connect with RyanXLinkedInConnect with JoubinTwitterLinkedInEmail: grit@kleinerperkins.comLearn more about Kleiner Perkins

Guillermo Rauch is the founder and CEO of Vercel, creators of v0 (one of the most popular AI app building tools), and the mind behind foundational JavaScript frameworks like Next.js and Socket.io. An open source pioneer and legendary engineer, Guillermo has built tools that power some of the internet's most innovative products, including Midjourney, Grok, and Notion. His mission is to democratize product creation, expanding the pool of potential builders from 5 million developers to over 100 million people worldwide. In this episode, you'll learn:1. How AI will radically speed up product development—and the three critical skills PMs and engineers should master now to stay ahead2. Why the future of building apps is shifting toward prompts instead of code, and how that affects traditional product teams3. Specific ways to improve your design “taste,” plus practical tips to consistently create beautiful, user-loved products4. How Guillermo built a powerful app in under two hours for $20 (while flying and using plane Wi-Fi) that would normally take weeks and thousands of dollars in engineering time5. The exact strategies Vercel uses internally to leverage AI tools like v0 and Cursor, enabling their team of 600 to ship faster and better than ever before6. Guillermo's actionable advice on increasing your product quality through rapid iteration, real-world user feedback, and creating intentional “exposure hours” for your team—Brought to you by:• WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs• Vanta — Automate compliance. Simplify security• LinkedIn Ads—Reach professionals and drive results for your business—Where to find Guillermo Rauch:• X: https://x.com/rauchg• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rauchg/• Website: https://rauchg.com/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Guillermo Rauch(04:43) v0's mission(07:03) The impact and growth of v0(15:54) The future of product development with AI(19:05) Empowering engineers and product builders(24:01) Skills for the future: coding, math, and eloquence(35:05) v0 in action: real-world applications(36:40) Tips for using v0 effectively(45:46) Core skills for building AI apps(49:44) Live demo(59:45) Understanding how AI thinks(01:04:35) AI integration and future prospects(01:07:22) Building taste(01:13:43) Limitations of v0(01:16:54) Improving the design of your product(01:20:09) The secret to product quality(01:22:35) Vercel's AI-driven development(01:25:43) Guillermo's vision for the future—Referenced:• v0: https://v0.dev/• Vercel: https://vercel.com/• GitHub: https://github.com/• Cursor: https://www.cursor.com/• Next.js Framework: https://nextjs.org/• Claude: https://claude.ai/new• Grok: https://x.ai/• Midjourney: https://www.midjourney.com• SocketIO: https://socket.io/• Notion's lost years, its near collapse during Covid, staying small to move fast, the joy and suffering of building horizontal, more | Ivan Zhao (CEO and co-founder): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-notion-ivan-zhao• Notion: https://www.notion.com/• Automattic: https://automattic.com/• Inside Bolt: From near-death to ~$40m ARR in 5 months—one of the fastest-growing products in history | Eric Simons (founder & CEO of StackBlitz): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-bolt-eric-simons• v0 Community: https://v0.dev/chat/community• Figma: https://www.figma.com/• Git Commit: https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/saving-changes/git-commit• What are Artifacts and how do I use them?: https://support.anthropic.com/en/articles/9487310-what-are-artifacts-and-how-do-i-use-them• Design Engineering at Vercel: https://vercel.com/blog/design-engineering-at-vercel• CSS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSS• Tailwind: https://tailwindcss.com/• Wordcel / Shape Rotator / Mathcel: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/wordcel-shape-rotator-mathcel• Steve Jobs's Ultimate Lesson for Companies: https://hbr.org/2011/08/steve-jobss-ultimate-lesson-fo• Bloom Hackathon: https://bloom.build/• Expenses Should Do Themselves | Saquon Barkley x Ramp (Super Bowl Ad): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1Tgsy7D0Jg• Velocity over everything: How Ramp became the fastest-growing SaaS startup of all time | Geoff Charles (VP of Product): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/velocity-over-everything-how-ramp• JavaScript: https://www.javascript.com/• React: https://react.dev/• Mapbox: https://www.mapbox.com/• Leaflet: https://leafletjs.com/• Escape hatches: https://react.dev/learn/escape-hatches• Supreme: https://supreme.com/• Shadcn: https://ui.shadcn.com/• Charles Schwab: https://www.schwab.com/• Fortune: https://fortune.com/• Semafor: https://www.semafor.com/• AI SDK: https://sdk.vercel.ai/• DeepSeek: https://www.deepseek.com/• Stripe: https://stripe.com/• Vercel templates: https://vercel.com/templates• GC AI: https://getgc.ai/• OpenEvidence: https://www.openevidence.com/• Paris Fashion Week: https://www.fhcm.paris/en/paris-fashion-week• Guillermo's post on X about making great products: https://x.com/rauchg/status/1887314115066274254• Everybody Can Cook billboard: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/evilrabbit_activity-7242975574242037760-uRW9/• Ratatouille: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0382932/—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Kevin Weil is the chief product officer at OpenAI, where he oversees the development of ChatGPT, enterprise products, and the OpenAI API. Prior to OpenAI, Kevin was head of product at Twitter, Instagram, and Planet, and was instrumental in the development of the Libra (later Novi) cryptocurrency project at Facebook.In this episode, you'll learn:1. How OpenAI structures its product teams and maintains agility while developing cutting-edge AI2. The power of model ensembles—using multiple specialized models together like a company of humans with different skills3. Why writing effective evals (AI evaluation tests) is becoming a critical skill for product managers4. The surprisingly enduring value of chat as an interface for AI, despite predictions of its obsolescence5. How “vibe coding” is changing how companies operate6. What OpenAI looks for when hiring product managers (hint: high agency and comfort with ambiguity)7. “Model maximalism” and why today's AI is the worst you'll ever use again8. Practical prompting techniques that improve AI interactions, including example-based prompting—Brought to you by:• Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments• Persona—A global leader in digital identity verification• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster—Where to find Kevin Weil:• X: https://x.com/kevinweil• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinweil/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Kevin's background(04:06) OpenAI's new image model(06:52) The role of chief product officer at OpenAI(10:18) His recruitment story and joining OpenAI(17:20) The importance of evals in AI(24:59) Shipping quickly and consistently(28:34) Product reviews and iterative deployment(39:35) Chat as an interface for AI(43:59) Collaboration between researchers and product teams(46:41) Hiring product managers at OpenAI(48:45) Embracing ambiguity in product management(51:41) The role of AI in product teams(53:21) Vibe coding and AI prototyping(55:55) The future of product teams and fine-tuned models(01:04:36) AI in education(01:06:42) Optimism and concerns about AI's future(01:16:37) Reflections on the Libra project(01:20:37) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• OpenAI: https://openai.com/• The AI-Generated Studio Ghibli Trend, Explained: https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2025/03/27/the-ai-generated-studio-ghibli-trend-explained/• Introducing 4o Image Generation: https://openai.com/index/introducing-4o-image-generation/• Waymo: https://waymo.com/• X: https://x.com• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/• Planet: https://www.planet.com/• Sam Altman on X: https://x.com/sama• A conversation with OpenAI's CPO Kevin Weil, Anthropic's CPO Mike Krieger, and Sarah Guo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxkvVZua28k• OpenAI evals: https://github.com/openai/evals• Deep Research: https://openai.com/index/introducing-deep-research/• Ev Williams on X: https://x.com/ev• OpenAI API: https://platform.openai.com/docs/overview• Dwight Eisenhower quote: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/dwight_d_eisenhower_164720• Inside Bolt: From near-death to ~$40m ARR in 5 months—one of the fastest-growing products in history | Eric Simons (founder & CEO of StackBlitz): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-bolt-eric-simons• StackBlitz: https://stackblitz.com/• Claude 3.5 Sonnet: https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-3-5-sonnet• Anthropic: https://www.anthropic.com/• Four-minute mile: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four-minute_mile• Chad: https://chatgpt.com/g/g-3F100ZiIe-chad-open-a-i• Dario Amodei on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dario-amodei-3934934/• Figma: https://www.figma.com/• Julia Villagra on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliavillagra/• Andrej Karpathy on X: https://x.com/karpathy• Silicon Valley CEO says ‘vibe coding' lets 10 engineers do the work of 100—here's how to use it: https://fortune.com/2025/03/26/silicon-valley-ceo-says-vibe-coding-lets-10-engineers-do-the-work-of-100-heres-how-to-use-it/• Cursor: https://www.cursor.com/• Windsurf: https://codeium.com/windsurf• GitHub Copilot: https://github.com/features/copilot• Patrick Srail on X: https://x.com/patricksrail• Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/• CK-12 Education: https://www.ck12.org/• Sora: https://openai.com/sora/• Sam Altman's post on X about creative writing: https://x.com/sama/status/1899535387435086115• Diem (formerly known as Libra): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diem_(digital_currency)• Novi: https://about.fb.com/news/2020/05/welcome-to-novi/• David Marcus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmarcus/• Peter Zeihan on X: https://x.com/PeterZeihan• The Wheel of Time on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Wheel-Time-Season-1/dp/B09F59CZ7R• Top Gun: Maverick on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Top-Gun-Maverick-Joseph-Kosinski/dp/B0DM2LYL8G• Thinking like a gardener not a builder, organizing teams like slime mold, the adjacent possible, and other unconventional product advice | Alex Komoroske (Stripe, Google): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unconventional-product-advice-alex-komoroske• MySQL: https://www.mysql.com/—Recommended books:• Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI: https://www.amazon.com/Co-Intelligence-Living-Working-Ethan-Mollick/dp/059371671X• The Accidental Superpower: Ten Years On: https://www.amazon.com/Accidental-Superpower-Ten-Years/dp/1538767341• Cable Cowboy: https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Cowboy-Malone-Modern-Business/dp/047170637X—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

With deals from LinkedIn, Figma, and a Fortune 100 giant, Kelsey Willock's startup Aura Finance is off to a strong start. But will early traction be enough to justify a steep valuation in a competitive space? This is The Pitch for Aura Finance. Featuring investors Charles Hudson, Elizabeth Yin, Jesse Middleton, Jenny Fielding and Kate McAndrew. ... Watch Kelsey's pitch on YouTube (@thepitchshow) and Patreon (@ThePitch) Subscribe to our public email newsletter: insider.thepitch.show Join our private investor community on Substack: thepitch.fund Register for the Season 13 Finale Watch Party: pitch.show/party *Disclaimer: No offer to invest in Aura Finance is being made to or solicited from the listening audience on today's show. The information provided on this show is not intended to be investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. The investors on today's episode are providing their opinions based on their own assessment of the business presented. Those opinions should not be considered professional investment advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Anneli Scopazzi, CEO and Founder of Boulevard Recruiting. With a background rooted in fast-growth startup environments, Anneli has become an authority on matching world-class talent to the right opportunities—particularly in an era brimming with AI-driven disruption. Expect a compelling conversation about how technology is changing the face of recruiting, the critical importance of upskilling and reskilling in today’s competitive market, and what early-stage ventures need to keep in mind while scaling with AI. KEY TAKEAWAYS We work with early-stage startups, starting with series B but it’s moved down to series C when the market crashed, but we now sit in series A where we’re hoping to scale with those clients for the next couple of years to be the first recruiters on the ground, working very closely with the founders. As the companies start to scale and hire internal recruiters the we’ll work very closely with them too. Covid benefitted us in vary big way as a remote company founded in Q4 2019, I was fiercely committed to working remotely, it was the number one driver of the company, the name Boulevard was chosen because it represents remote work. When Covid happened, everyone had to figure out how to work remotely and now companies are accustomed to it and how it works. AI is something that felt scary for a minute back when ChatGPT was released and there was all this appearance of fast acceleration. But, working in tech, we’ve known this has been going on for years. I wanted to be the first to adopt and work with these early tech companies, you don’t want to be the company that doesn’t survive the extinction event if you can’t work it out. In the recruiting landscape I haven’t seen any amazing AI solutions just yet. There are some things that make us more efficient, but we’re in a bit of a safe space because of the relationship focus, which is really hard to replicate with AI technology. The more exciting thing is working with the AI companies and seeing them get funded massively. It’s an exciting space to be in. BEST MOMENTS ‘I’ve loved the French language and Paris since I was very young and I didn’t want to name my business after myself. What I love about Boulevard is that it’s of French origin but it’s very recognisable around the world.’ ‘What excites me about working with early-stage startups is that you have the ability to do more than you’re qualified to do.’ ‘A lot of my personal growth has been very self-taught. That’s been very liberating and rewarding but also can be very painful at times learning through mistakes.’ ‘There’s a lot of administrative work in recruiting, in-bound applications have surged dramatically in the last couple of years globally. The recruiting tools we’re seeing are sorting through profiles faster and narrowing it down to a shorter list for the human to review.’ ABOUT THE GUEST Anneli Scopazzi is the CEO and Founder of Boulevard Recruiting, a boutique San Francisco-based agency that specializes in matching startups with world-class talent in engineering, product, and beyond. She began her career in accounting before transitioning into recruiting about seven years ago, initially stepping into a 100% commission role at a boutique agency and later being recruited to Palantir. This non-traditional path enabled Anneli to grow quickly in leadership, ultimately becoming Head of Talent at Figma, where she played a key role in tripling the company’s headcount through its Series B and C stages. In September 2019, driven by her passion for connecting people and technology, Anneli founded Boulevard Recruiting—a remote-focused firm that balances expert matching of talent with a flexible work culture for its team members. LinkedIn ABOUT THE HOST Sabine is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur. She is the CEO and Managing Partner of Alchemy Crew a venture lab that accelerates the curation, validation, & commercialization of new tech business models. Sabine is renowned within the insurance sector for building some of the most renowned tech startup accelerators around the world working with over 30 corporate insurers, accelerated over 100 startup ventures. Sabine is the co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, a top 50 Women in Tech, a FinTech and InsurTech Influencer, an investor & multi-award winner. Twitter LinkedIn Instagram Facebook TikTok Email Website

JJ Tang is the co-founder and CEO of Rootly, a company redefining how organizations approach incident management and reliability. Rootly is powering 100s of customers like Figma, NVIDIA, Canva, and more. Top 3 Value Bombs 1. Solve the problem from many angles. Go out, source and find your customers where they are and work ruthlessly. 2. All good leaders need to be operators. If the CEO can't do it, you can't expect anyone to do it. 3. Efficiency is the best force and function for prioritization. Visit their website and get a free demo - Rootly Sponsor YT 100 Email JLD to learn more about making YouTube magic in 100 days: john@eofire.com