Aaron Thomas → Design Leadership
I build products that communicate uncertainty, handle failures gracefully, and put humans in the loop.
→ Seeking design leadership at AI-forward companies.
Selected Work
AI tutoring that actually works
Designed an AI tutor for K-12 reading intervention that moved the needle on real student outcomes. Key challenge: making AI-generated feedback legible to teachers without overwhelming them. Designed dashboards showing confidence levels and areas where the AI was uncertain.
View projectFintech education product from scratch
Led design and brand strategy for a mobile options trading education app at Investor's Business Daily. Conducted 59 user studies across 4 rounds. Introduced 6 design process changes including user study repositories, participatory workshops, and iOS component library. Navigated HIPPO dynamics with hidden voting and written-first feedback. Design completed in 3 months.
Conversational AI with a face
Led design for AI companions in mental health and education contexts. Real-time video synthesis with careful attention to psychological safety and appropriate boundaries.
Experience
AI-native agency where client revenue funds alignment research. Lead design across 40+ client projects. Defining lean & agile design processes into an AI agency.
Impact—Shipped AI products with real outcomes: 64% learning gap closure, 2× benchmark performance.
View workLed team of 4 designers through Dow Jones acquisition. Took over design function, professionalized the practice, retained team through transition.
Impact—10% checkout conversion increase. 59 user studies. Built research infrastructure that outlasted my tenure.
View workDeployed automation tools delivering results 15x faster. Managed HR system serving 500+ clients. Reduced default loan rate to 30% benchmark in Fintech.
Impact—Products across fintech, HR, and enterprise verticals.
UX design & research for 20 LA and NYC companies. Won the design concepts bid for Hyperloop One. Retained and redesign for The McKittrick Hotel (Sleep No More).
Impact—Strategic design for startups and enterprises.
Founding member managing warehouse + offshore teams. Launched into a sport social media platform. Created iOS and Android apps using lean design.
Impact—0→1 product from founding through launch.
What I Believe
Most design values—consistency, polish, pixel-perfection—are adaptations to a world where production was expensive. They're contingent, not eternal.
When AI can generate interfaces faster than you can open Figma, the question isn't 'how do we preserve craft?' It's 'what do we do with abundance?' Designers become ontologists—defining what should exist, not just making it.
The hardest design problems in AI aren't aesthetic—they're about making systems legible. When should an AI explain itself? How do you design for appropriate trust? These are the questions I find most interesting.
I don't have all the answers. But I'm shipping products that explore them.
Education & Community
Certificate, Human-Computer Interaction
MIT CSAIL
Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
Bachelor of Arts, Economics
University of Arizona
2008–2012
Content Design Director, UXPALA
Second largest UXPA chapter globally, 4,400+ members (2020–22)
Design Management & Product Designer, Hack for LA
Code for America Brigade, Home Unite Us civic tech (2018–20)
Let's Talk
If you're building AI products and need a design leader who ships, let's talk.
Looking for roles where I can lead design for AI products, build teams, and help define what should exist—not just what looks good.
me@aarontho.com