Three modes, one bet: emerging AI capability, turned into product direction that ships. Here's what each one looks like, and how an engagement actually starts.
Most AI products are demos wearing a product’s clothes. They answer, they generate, they impress for ten minutes, and then a real user arrives with a real job and the interface has nothing for them but another blinking cursor.
I design the part that closes that gap: the surface the model composes, the moment it composes it, and the judgment about what a person should see instead of more text. From the model boundary to the interface.
Who it's for For teams who have a working model and a flat interface. You’ve proven the capability. Now it has to feel like a product someone comes back to.
I build what I design: working prototypes in Claude Code, agent systems, and the automated pipelines that take creative work off the critical path. The prototype gets real this week, not next quarter.
And because most teams don’t need a tool so much as a new habit, I run the workshops and rollouts that make AI a working part of how a team operates, not a tab someone forgets to open.
Who it's for For teams who want the prototype shipped now, and for organizations rolling out Claude who want it to actually stick.
Senior creative leadership without the full-time hire. For AI startups with engineering and ambition but no one who owns whether the thing looks and feels like it’s worth trusting.
Brand identity, design systems, and the taste of twenty years, applied where it’s scarce. A creative lead on call who sets the bar and keeps it.
Who it's for For founders and teams who need direction more than headcount: senior judgment, available when the work needs it.
Most work begins in one of these shapes and grows from there. The right one depends on where you are, not on a package.
A fixed-scope engagement to find and prove the highest-value AI surface in your product. We define the use case, prototype the UI, and leave you with a working POC and a clear plan. Typically two to four weeks.
I join your team as the design partner for an AI build, week over week. Design, prototyping, and direction on a monthly basis, for as long as the work needs it.
Lighter-touch direction and enablement: fractional creative leadership, workshops, and review for teams that need taste on call rather than a full embed.
Tell me what you're building and where it's stuck. I'll tell you honestly whether I'm the right person for it.
Or write hello@joshuawells.com directly.