Kate Huezo Designs is my independent practice focused on founding design for early-stage AI startups. I come in at zero to one: before companies can afford a full team, after they desperately need one. I make the design decisions that are hardest to undo later.

Recent work:

Affections of Vissan — Built and shipped an AI-driven fantasy dating sim in 2 days. Demoing at Ukrainian Games Festival @ GDC 2026 (March 10–11)

MindShift — AI perspective-mapping tool. Won hackathon at AWS Builder Loft (Claude Code Hack Day)

Agentic Videographer Rep — UX for autonomous AI video agent. Finalist at Wordware OpenClaw Hack Night (YC S24 hosted)

Visianary — Full UX collaboration on a film crew marketplace startup (LinkedIn/Upwork for film production)

TimeLens / SF Waterfront — Interactive historical location visualization app

Joined WiseTech following their acquisition of Blume Global, where I had been the founding designer. Stayed through the integration to ensure design continuity and knowledge transfer across the combined product teams.

• Led UX initiatives across enterprise logistics tools, from research through high-fidelity delivery — ensuring seamless, accessible, user-friendly experiences at Fortune 500 scale

• Spearheaded usability improvements that increased client retention by 25%, streamlining interaction flows and reducing friction for complex, high-stakes user tasks

• Developed and refined a cohesive UX identity for WiseTech, balancing innovation with WCAG 2.1 accessibility compliance

• Partnered cross-functionally with PMs, engineers, and analysts through problem discovery workshops and usability research

• Mentored designers and educated cross-functional teams on UX best practices, fostering a culture of user-centered decision-making

Top 3 projects I've spearheaded:

Appointment scheduling - https://lnkd.in/gWrxYfsK

Port terminal efficiency optimization - https://lnkd.in/gezKkNTA

IoT integration for railroads - https://bit.ly/4akt2TJ

• Designed and prototyped solutions that improved client retention by 25% and contributed to securing two major contracts.

• Led the UX strategy for a detention and demurrage management dashboard (improved user satisfaction 34%) and a port/railway appointment managment system.

Improved automation workflows, optimizing customer network connectivity and logistics orchestration.

• Established a design system aligned with W3 accessibility standards and transitioned the design library from Sketch to Figma.

• Documented component specifications in Confluence and introduced progressive information disclosure to streamline user experiences.

• Collaborated closely with Product Managers, Developers, and Marketing teams to align UX with business goals.

• Mentored three junior designers, fostering team growth and knowledge-sharing.

First design hire in the United States at Blume Global; established the UX practice from scratch, grew a remote team of 3 designers in India, and saw the company through its acquisition by WiseTech Global (Fortune 500).

• Designed and shipped key enterprise tools including a dashboard for detention and demurrage management and a new port and railway appointment booking interface, directly supporting international freight coordination.

• Developed high-impact demo prototypes that helped the sales team secure 2 major client contracts, showcasing product potential in real-world scenarios.

• Spearheaded usability improvements that increased client retention by 25%, streamlining interaction flows and reducing friction for complex user tasks.

• Enhanced automation and resolution pathways, resulting in more reliable customer network connectivity and increased satisfaction.

• Actively contributed to design system curation in line with WCAG 2.1 accessibility standards and current UX best practices.

• Collaborated cross-functionally with PMs, engineers, and marketers to build cohesive, user-centered experiences across the platform.

First and only designer at an early-stage AI startup; owned the full UX practice from research through delivery. Company acquired by Microsoft.

• Conducted extensive user research, creating personas, user flows, and detailed scenarios to enhance UX strategy.

• Led usability testing and A/B experiments, optimizing prototypes for web, mobile, and browser-based platforms.

• Designed and presented a prototype for a multinational aerospace company Rolls Royce, leading research and brand alignment efforts.

• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to rewrite website copy, improving value perception by 48%.