# Charles Berg > Accessibility UX Designer | Assistive Technology | crb.is Location: San Mateo, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/charlesberg I just went independent after more than 20 years designing products at Google, Microsoft, and Motorola — and I'm now available for consulting work in accessibility UX and co-design. Most of my recent work has been at the intersection of assistive technology and human-centered design: leading the design of Magnifier and Simple View on Pixel, and defining the UX for Guided Step, an AI-powered navigation tool for blind and low-vision users. What I've learned across all of it is that the companies doing accessibility well aren't just checking a compliance box — they're doing real user research, testing with the people they're designing for, and building things that actually work. That's the work I'm here to help with. If you're trying to close the gap between what your product does and what disabled users and older adults actually need, I'd love to talk. Reach me at crberg@gmail.com or at crb.is. ## Work Experience ### Staff UX Designer, Android + Pixel Accessibility @ Google Jan 2023 – Jan 2026 | Mountain View, CA • Achieved a 4.8-star Play Store rating for Magnifier, a Pixel accessibility app I led from concept to launch. Drove the design of core features like live search, which earned praise from leading accessibility organizations and serves over 154,000 monthly active users. • Drove an 80% in-store conversion rate for Simple View, a feature designed to increase smartphone adoption among older adults in Japan. Led the user research and design pivot that moved the feature into the main setup flow, dramatically increasing its discoverability and impact. • Defined the product vision and UX for "Guided Step," a private research beta exploring AI-powered navigation for blind and low-vision users. Our findings on user trust and multimodal feedback were submitted for presentation at the CHI 2026 conference and now inform Google's accessibility strategy. • Championed accessibility for older adults through user research, partnerships with AARP, and presentations to Google leadership, advocating for inclusive product development and securing buy-in for future initiatives ### Staff UX Designer, Google.org - Digitais da Floresta @ Google Jan 2023 – Jan 2023 | Mountain View, CA • Translated complex environmental data into an intuitive dashboard by leading the UX for Digitais da Floresta, a deforestation tracking tool for the Brazilian Amazon Forest. Applied consumer design principles to a data-intensive scientific domain, conducting research with environmental scientists to create actionable visualizations. ### Senior UX Designer, Nest Connectivity @ Google Jan 2018 – Jan 2023 | Mountain View, CA • Simplified the Nest Wifi setup (OOBE) and management experience, translating complex networking jargon into plain language that reduced user confusion and troubleshooting time. → The Verge gave Nest Wifi an 8 out of 10, called it the Smarter Nest Router. → 9to5Google: “At every step of the process, Nest Wifi delivers on …easy to use” • Reduced common Wi-Fi issues by 15% by leading "Project Haddock," a strategic initiative to proactively identify and help users resolve the most persistent connectivity problems. ### Senior UX Designer, Google Home Speakers @ Google Jan 2017 – Jan 2019 | Mountain View, CA • Established an intuitive, non-verbal communication system by pioneering the iconic 4-dot lighting pattern for all Google Home and Nest speakers, simplifying device status for millions of users. ### Principal Design Lead, CaaP team @ Skype Jan 2015 – Jan 2017 | Palo Alto, CA Led the design team for Conversation as a Platform (i.e., messaging bots) for Skype messenger. • Launched initial bot experience on current Skype client, currently being used by over 300 million people daily • Led design for group video calling • Oversaw redesign of Skype client on Android and iOS, resulting in improved play store/App Store ratings and increased downloads • Encouraged the team to create team design principles and hold selves accountable to them • Oversaw the team transition to from Illustrator to Sketch • Added prototyping to the team repertoire by motivating the team to learn Pixate and Framer.js ### User Experience Principal Designer @ Motorola Jan 2012 – Jan 2015 | Sunnyvale, CA Key senior practitioner and leader of the Motorola digital design team. Focused on the creation of fantastic products through application of a lean UX design methodology that encourages prototyping as well as build-measure-learn. • Added location awareness to Moto Assist, used by over 6 million people at its peak, with a 4.5 user rating on the Google Play Store. • Reduced the original Motorola X startup screens to the fewest among Android devices. • Designed Motorola Migrate, an application which easily transfers content from the user’s old phone to his/her new one. A focus on simplicity has resulted in a 4.3 star user rating on the Android Play Store. • Created the Motorola X help application with search and chat in the forefront, encouraging users to find solutions in the simplest way possible. • Created the initial interaction framework for Motorola touchless control, pioneering the “find my phone” and “what’s up” commands. ### Senior Design Manager @ Motorola Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 Managed an international design team focused on hardware centric and enterprise solutions. - Redesigned enterprise email and text messaging applications to enhance visual appeal and simplicity. - Developed design guidelines for the emergent natural user interface (NUI), incorporating gesture and speech into the mobile interface. - Improved processes to double productivity with 30% fewer staff resources. ### Senior Design Carrier Lead @ Motorola Jan 2006 – Jan 2011 Designed and presented user experience presentations to Verizon and T-Mobile. Represented carrier requests within Motorola, leading to a user interface that combined great usability and carrier needs. • Redesigned and represented the Droid X user interface to Verizon, ultimately resulting in over 3 million devices sold. • Designed key experiences and sales presentation for the original Motorola Droid, ultimately resulting in 2 million devices sold. • Spearheaded and delivered the design presentation for Motorola’s first Android device, the Cliq, bringing increased Q4 sales and enhanced awareness of Motorola as an “Android shop.” • Led development on My Faves 2.0, linking social networking to carrier value. TMobile used the Motorola MyFaves design as the initial visual and interactive model. ### Consultant, User-centered Design @ HSBC Jan 2003 – Jan 2006 Developed the information architecture and user testing for call center applications for a global company of 250,000 employees and 110 million customers over 80 countries. - Created the information architecture for credit card call center program in Hong Kong serving over 4 million customers. Research included extensive observation sessions and stakeholder interviews to integrate local business customs and expectations into the user experience. - Produced information architecture for the enterprise complain tracking system with over 50 million customers and over 5,000 employees. ### Consultant, Website Design & Development @ Self Employed Jan 2002 – Jan 2003 Designed the information architecture and visual design for Chicago-area non-profits. - Designed and programmed brownfieldcentral.com (defunct), reaching 20,000 subscribers in 2003. - Developed artdiscovery.org (defunct), funded by Kraft, detailing arts events in the Chicago area. ### Software Configuration Engineer @ Business Logic Corporation Jan 2001 – Jan 2001 Managed the codebase for BusinessLogic, a financial services software application. - Applied the Carnegie Mellon software change management principles to the organization, resulting in a codebase that was easily managed and understood. ### Internet Analyst @ Tribune Interactive Jan 1998 – Jan 2001 Developed and maintained chicagotribune.com and other Tribune web sites in three national markets. ## Education ### Master’s Degree in Information University of Michigan - School of Information ### B.A. in English Literature & Theater Cornell College ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/charlesberg - Portfolio: http://crb.is --- Source: https://flows.cv/charlesberg JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/charlesberg/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-13