Product development
Sindy
Helping learning institutes become AI-enabled.
Length of project
8 months
My role
- Product designer
Tools
- Figma
- Adobe PS/AI
Team
10-15 people
Scroll down to see the case
Overview
Sindy is an AI-powered platform designed to integrate seamlessly into teaching and assessment practices at schools and universities.
Its primary objectives are to enhance academic integrity and reduce teacher and student burnout by automating key educational processes, making teaching more efficient and student interactions more meaningful.
The Challenge
Developing a unified Design System, refining the product, and aligning the development—within an already-defined branding framework—was a critical objective before our presentation at UC Berkeley SkyDeck.
With a tight deadline, I focused on implementing a cohesive design framework for consistency and scalability while ensuring smooth collaboration between the founders, engineers, and the design team.
Rapid iterations were necessary, incorporating feedback from both educators and developers, all while staying on track to meet the presentation timeline.
With a tight deadline, I focused on implementing a cohesive design framework for consistency and scalability while ensuring smooth collaboration between the founders, engineers, and the design team.
Rapid iterations were necessary, incorporating feedback from both educators and developers, all while staying on track to meet the presentation timeline.
Step 1: Foundation
Platform Consistency Initiative
To tackle the lack of consistency across the platform, I first created a comprehensive Design System. This provided a solid foundation for all future design decisions, ensuring uniformity in typography, colour palettes, spacing, and UI components.
Once the system was in place, I reorganised the design files in Figma, aligning them with the new structure to streamline collaboration and improve efficiency moving forward.
Step 2:
Insights
Insights
User Research and Ideation
Next, we gathered insights directly from the platform’s end users—teachers—through interviews and surveys. By understanding their pain points and workflows, we designed the Teachers' Dashboard.
The goal was to create a tool that could automate key tasks, reduce burnout, and empower educators to manage their classes more efficiently. This led to the decision to integrate AI-driven features, enabling students to engage in automated conversations based on their assignment content.
Next, we gathered insights directly from the platform’s end users—teachers—through interviews and surveys. By understanding their pain points and workflows, we designed the Teachers' Dashboard.
The goal was to create a tool that could automate key tasks, reduce burnout, and empower educators to manage their classes more efficiently. This led to the decision to integrate AI-driven features, enabling students to engage in automated conversations based on their assignment content.
Step 3:
Dev Mode
Dev Mode
</> and Collaboration
The development phase was where the real collaboration began. I worked closely with the engineering team and the founders to ensure that the designs translated effectively into the final product. Communication and feedback loops were essential, particularly as we were working within a tight timeline. We needed to stay aligned on vision and ensure that the product not only looked great but also functioned seamlessly.
The development phase was where the real collaboration began. I worked closely with the engineering team and the founders to ensure that the designs translated effectively into the final product. Communication and feedback loops were essential, particularly as we were working within a tight timeline. We needed to stay aligned on vision and ensure that the product not only looked great but also functioned seamlessly.
Step 4 Students
Learning Hub: Designing the Student Dashboard
With the Teachers' Dashboard successfully implemented, we shifted our focus to the Student Dashboard.
Our goal was to create an intuitive, engaging experience that would help students manage their coursework, assignments, and learning progress. Using the same research approach, we iterated on the design to ensure it met students' needs, reduced stress, and encouraged organisation.
Our goal was to create an intuitive, engaging experience that would help students manage their coursework, assignments, and learning progress. Using the same research approach, we iterated on the design to ensure it met students' needs, reduced stress, and encouraged organisation.
Step 5 Validation
User Feedback Integration
As the final designs were implemented, we conducted several testing phases across universities to validate the platform’s effectiveness in real-world educational settings.
The feedback from both teachers and students was invaluable in fine-tuning the product, ensuring it was ready for the UC Berkeley presentation and scalable for wider use.
The feedback from both teachers and students was invaluable in fine-tuning the product, ensuring it was ready for the UC Berkeley presentation and scalable for wider use.
End of Journey
The Decision to Pivot and Move On
Through pitching at UC Berkeley and participating in competitions and grants, Sindy secured a US$200,000 SAFE note upon acceptance into the SkyDeck accelerator. With this financial backing and the team’s relocation to San Francisco, the company initially aimed for expanded growth and greater impact in the educational sector.
However, after the presentation and further evaluation, the founders decided to pivot and focus on a new business venture, leading to the decision not to continue with the Sindy project.
However, after the presentation and further evaluation, the founders decided to pivot and focus on a new business venture, leading to the decision not to continue with the Sindy project.