Silvia AI Inc. · Design Lead · 2026 to present
Company
Silvia AI Inc.
Role
Design Lead
Timeline
April 2026 to present
Platforms
Desktop, mobile web, iOS, iPhone Duo
Tools
Figma, Storybook, Claude Code, React, Blender
Impact
pull requests merged
of new users start a chat, up from 71%
mobile onboarding completion
fewer mobile drop-offs at the security step
April 2026
Product designer
Shipped core flows, swapped a preferences form for chat memory and ran the brand workshop.
July 2026
System builder
Started Modulus from scratch: tokens, components and the navigation shell.
August 2026
Design engineer
Began shipping components and full screens to production in code, each one built and documented in Storybook.
September 2026 onwards
Design Lead
Lead the design system, product strategy and every major flow.
01 · Design system
Problem
The UI grew screen by screen. Design and code drifted apart, and UI bugs needed a dedicated person.
Decision
I built Modulus alongside the live app. One token file feeds Figma and code, and each component ships to Storybook in its own pull request.
Outcome
UI bug tickets fell below 2%, and the dedicated bug role was no longer needed.
200+
pull requests by engineers
2,000+
component uses in Figma
01
Components
02
Built in code
03
Light and dark
Principles I wrote for the system
Show the data, hide the machine
Every number shows its source. The technical plumbing stays hidden.
Inform, never push
Silvia acts as a fiduciary, so the UI never adds false urgency.
Assume competence, carry the effort
Treat people as capable adults. Silvia does the heavy analysis.
02 · The product
Ask Silvia
Research
Radar
Portfolio
Vault
Conversation
Settings
03 · Onboarding
On mobile, people dropped off right before linking their accounts.
I added a screen that says plainly what Silvia can and can’t do: read-only access, SOC 2 certified, disconnect any time. Then I moved onboarding into the chat.
mobile onboarding completion after the redesign
new users sending a first message in week one, after I made Silvia greet them first
04 · Chat and Research
People didn’t know where Deep Research lived. I put Chat and Research on one page, with a mode switch in the composer.
Before anyone types, Silvia leads with what changed in their accounts. The preview beside each mode shows what it does.
05 · Tasks and sheets
Tasks like filing taxes take time, so people should see the result before they start. On desktop, hovering a task opens a preview of what it produces.
On phones, the same preview opens as a sheet.
Task previews on phones
Tapping a task opens a sheet that fits its content. The result plays first, with Run task and Close below.
Nine tasks, nine previews
Every task has its own preview, from a tax check to a legacy plan.
06 · Composer
The composer runs Chat, Research and Radar. In Chat, the plus button opens one menu for everything people add.
Upload files, pick from Vault, connect Gmail, add assets, or ask for a document, PDF, spreadsheet or deck.
07 · Chat action cards
Action cards let Silvia draft and send emails from Gmail, ask for approval and sum up what changed.
Every email gets a five-second undo, so people stay in control.
01
Silvia drafts the email
02
Sent, with five seconds to undo
03
Delivered through Gmail
04
A summary of what changed
08 · Vault
Tax returns, policies and statements had no proper home. I rebuilt Vault with folders, uploads, and Google Drive and Dropbox connectors.
Silvia reads each file and offers to sort everything into folders. Phones get their own layout.
09 · Multi-portfolio
Many investors manage money for a partner, a child or a business. Now each portfolio can belong to a person or an entity.
One Net worth card breaks down by portfolio, and every account shows its owner.
Lower down, each asset class gets a category chip with its count and total. Above the list sit only search, a filter, Select and Add.
10 · Charts
I built the chart system on Modulus tokens: a gradient under every line, a dot grid behind, and red and green only as a pair.
The Net worth card switches between Performance, By portfolio and Ratios, with a tooltip on every point.
11 · Add assets and liabilities
Twelve categories, from bank accounts to real estate, collectibles and loans, share one Add and Overview pattern.
People connect an institution or enter values by hand, then assign each item to a portfolio.
Connect an institution
Review linked accounts
Track any other asset
Value a home from its address
Category tiles on hover
12 · Every screen
Desktop and phone ship in the same pull request. Phones get their own type scale and 44-point tap targets.
I also adapted the core screens for iPhone Duo, Apple’s foldable, in open, closed and half-open states.
13 · How I work
I take my own designs all the way to merged code, so nothing gets lost in handoff.
300+ merged pull requests since late July, with a median of under a day to merge. Fifteen were accessibility fixes.
01
Prototype fast
Try ideas as quick prototypes before they reach Figma.
02
Design on the system
Use library components at real sizes. Flag gaps before building anything new.
03
Validate on review boards
Check tap targets and accessibility, desktop and phone side by side.
04
Ship small pull requests
I write the code with Claude Code. Engineering reviews it, then I merge.
14 · Beyond the product
The role went past the app, into the brand, events and launch films.
Brand workshop
A 120-minute workshop with leadership in FigJam that set the brand’s direction.
Brand identity
Cormorant Garamond and Inter, a warm dark palette and rose gold for key moments.
Investor Summit
Venue signage and photoreal renders from my own Blender pipeline. My Rose Gold “Ask Silvia” concept was chosen.
Launch videos
A weekly product series for X, plus the Ask Silvia and Modulus launch films.