IBM Watson

As a UX designer and visual design lead for Watson Conversation (later rebranded as Watson Assistant), I played a critical role in developing IBM’s early tooling for conversational AI. This groundbreaking platform empowered users to create chatbots and virtual agents driven by natural language understanding (NLU). My contributions spanned planning, research, design craft, and stakeholder engagement, all of which were pivotal in shaping the product’s direction and ensuring its success.

As a UX and visual design lead for Watson Conversation (later rebranded as Watson Assistant), I played a critical role in developing IBM’s early tooling for conversational AI. This groundbreaking platform empowered users to create chatbots and virtual agents driven by natural language understanding (NLU). My contributions spanned planning, research, design craft, and stakeholder engagement, all of which were pivotal in shaping the product’s direction and ensuring its success.

Crafting Intuitive Experiences

‍From low-fidelity sketches to high-fidelity prototypes, I drove the design process to address critical customer problems. For instance, one of the biggest challenges was simplifying the UX for creating entities and synonyms— essentially building a "dictionary" to train custom AI models. My designs streamlined this complex process, making it more accessible for users while leveraging the capabilities of Watson’s NLU technology.

To support customers further, I concepted a project that would integrate learning resources directly into the platform. By consolidating API documentation, YouTube tutorials, and guides, I created a one-stop knowledge hub, enhancing usability and enabling customers to realize the platform's full potential.

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Visual Design and Systems Thinking

‍I leveraged IBM’s Carbon Design System to craft visually cohesive and functional interfaces, ensuring consistency across Watson products. My contributions included stress-testing components, refining navigation patterns, and proposing color schemes that aligned with Watson’s identity. The navigation and visual choices we shipped became integral to the Watson family of products.

Impact and Reflection

‍The work I contributed to Watson Conversation positioned it as a leading tool in the conversational AI space for the time. From enabling intuitive chatbot creation to fostering customer learning, the design decisions and product direction I helped shape laid the groundwork for a scalable and user-friendly platform. This project exemplifies my ability to lead cross-functional efforts, solve complex problems, and deliver designs that merge user needs with cutting-edge technology.