Josh Clark and Veronika Kindred: Sentient Design and the future of interfaces

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Jun 25, 2025

Josh Clark is the founder of Big Medium, bringing three decades of UX experience, while Veronika Kindred, his daughter, offers fresh insights as a rising designer. Together, they discuss the transformative power of AI in design, urging a shift beyond chat interfaces towards adaptable, user-driven experiences. They explore the importance of trust, transparency, and generative design tools that enhance user interactions. The conversation also delves into the evolution from traditional search to personalized discovery, highlighting the future of intelligent interfaces.

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INSIGHT

Beyond Chatbots in AI

AI-powered chatbots dominate current interface thinking but limit the possibilities of intelligent systems.
Designers should explore beyond conversation to unlock new forms of AI-enhanced user experiences.

ADVICE

Master AI's Grain

Learn the strengths and weaknesses of AI technologies to embrace their unpredictability as creative assets.
Use AI's unique capabilities instead of forcing it to mimic traditional predictable computer systems.

ADVICE

Prioritize Human-Centered AI

Focus AI integration on enhancing human-centered experiences, not just on efficiency or cost-cutting.
Designers should discover how AI can make their jobs more enjoyable and creative, not replace them.

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As designers, we’re entering a new era. AI isn’t just a tool we use behind the scenes, but a collaborator we’re designing with and for. It’s a shift that challenges our assumptions, pushes us beyond static interfaces, and calls on us to rethink what it means to create experiences in an intelligent, adaptive world.

In this episode, we talk with Josh Clark and Veronika Kindred—co-authors of the upcoming book Sentient Design—about what it takes to design for this new frontier. Josh brings three decades of UX wisdom, while Veronika, a rising voice in the field (and, as it turns out, Josh’s daughter), brings fresh perspective as part of the first generation of AI-native designers. Together, they offer a framework for designing interfaces that respond to context, intent, and user agency—without falling into the trap of chatbots-as-default.

We dig into why chat interfaces might be holding us back, explore new experience patterns that go way beyond conversation, and discuss what it means to design systems where users can essentially draw their own interfaces into existence. We also tackle the thorny questions around trust, transparency, and what happens when we cede control back to users in ways that could make traditional designers uncomfortable.

Learn more about Josh and Veronika:

Sign up for the Big Medium newsletter for fresh insights about Sentient Design, product design, and UX.
Learn more about the Sentient Design book from Rosenfeld Media.
Read more from Veronika and Josh at bigmedium.com.

Josh Clark is the founder and principal of Big Medium, where he leads UX design efforts that help complex organizations navigate digital transformation and design for emerging technologies. His work spans AI, connected devices, responsive design, and enterprise-scale design systems. Known for shaping future-friendly interfaces, Josh has helped organizations adapt their products and processes to meet rapidly evolving user needs.

Veronika Kindred is a designer and researcher at Big Medium, where she collaborates with leading companies to define and solve complex design challenges. She is co-author with Josh Clark of Sentient Design: AI and the New Digital Experience, a forthcoming book from Rosenfeld Media that explores how AI is reshaping user experience and digital interfaces.

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