Rosenfeld Review Podcast

AI is opening the door to a new era of design—but most teams are still focused on making their existing work faster rather than reimagining what’s possible. Lou talks with Josh Clark and Veronica Kindred about their new book, Sentient Design, and what it takes to design truly intelligent interfaces.

They introduce the idea of “practical magic”—starting with bold, even impossible wishes and then working...

AI may be built on language—but according to Paul Ford, we’re still struggling to find the right words to describe what it’s actually doing to our work and thinking. Lou and Paul explore how language shapes our ability to understand—and responsibly use—AI.

Drawing on his dual background in programming and writing, Paul shares a set of evolving “rules” for working with AI: don’t let it...

As AI becomes easier and cheaper to deploy, designers face a new challenge: deciding not just what can be automated, but what should be. Lou Rosenfeld talks with Joy Kendi of Dalberg Design — and an upcoming speaker at the Designing with AI 2026 conference — about introducing AI into high-stakes systems where design decisions can directly affect access to healthcare, services, and critical resources.

Joy shares examples...

Privacy concerns didn’t appear overnight—they’ve been building quietly alongside the technologies we rely on every day. Lou and Robert Stribley, author of Design for Privacy, explore how digital tracking, AI, and data sharing have reshaped the way personal information moves through the modern web.

Robert traces the growing privacy challenge from early internet tracking to today’s complex ecosystem of smartph...

AI is reshaping product development faster than most organizations can even rethink how they work—and that gap sits at the heart of this conversation with product design guru Jeff Gothelf. Lou and Jeff explore why proven methods like Agile and OKRs so often become “process theater” instead of real change, and what it actually takes to shift organizations from output-driven cultures to outcome-driven ones.

Jeff exp...

Jen van der Meer’s career path is anything but linear—spanning comparative religion, working on Wall Street, internet startups, and design education. In this thoughtful and timely conversation, Jen shares how her liberal arts background shaped her global perspective, eventually leading her to leadership roles at Frog Design, startups, and now Parsons School of Design, where she co-directs the MFA in Transdisciplinary De...

AI isn’t just changing research tools—it’s reshaping how research itself happens. Lou chats with ResearchOps pioneer (and co-host of the upcoming inaugural UXR Tools Summit) Kate Towsey about the shift from linear workflows toward interconnected research systems where recruiting, knowledge management, repositories, and insights all function as part of a single ecosystem. Kate argues that future organizations will ...

What happens when someone moves from government UX research to shaping research for the broader industry? Lou talks with Maria Rosala, Director of Research at Nielsen Norman Group, about her role, her career path, and the value of research repositories.

Maria shares what it means to lead research at NN/g and how her experience as a UX researcher in the UK Home Office shaped her perspective on research maturity and real-world practi...

Survey research is in trouble—and Caroline Jarrett explains why. Returning to the podcast to preview the upcoming UXR Tools Summit, she and Lou Rosenfeld explore what’s really happening in the survey world and what researchers should be asking vendors right now.

They discuss collapsing response rates driven by constant, low-value feedback requests and the growing sense that many surveys are performative rather than usef...

When Dana Chisnell and Christian Crumlish took roles in U.S. federal agencies, they knew the work wouldn’t be easy. But what unfolded during their time under the second Trump administration went far beyond bureaucratic resistance. In this gripping conversation, they recount the painful dismantling of teams like 18F and the Department of Homeland Securi...

Can AI really make us smarter, or is it just making us lazy thinkers? Lou reunites with the brilliant Chris Noessel to explore the nuanced world of AI assistants. As Chris gears up to release his third Rosenfeld book, Designing Assistant Technology: AI That Makes Us Smarter, he explains the critical differences between assistants (tools that help you do things) and agents (tools that do things for you). They discuss the implication...

What happens when a designer starts questioning “craft” itself? In this episode of the Rosenfeld Review, Lou Rosenfeld sits down with longtime collaborator and community builder Uday Gajendar to explore his provocative new idea: “anti-craft.” Drawing on decades of experience across enterprises, startups, and academia—as well as his role curating Rosenfeld conferences—Uday shares how his thinking ...

The second edition of Service Design: From Insight to Implementation, by Lavrans Løvlie, Andy Polaine, and Ben Reason isn’t just a refresh—it’s a reintroduction to a field that’s evolved significantly in the last decade. Whether you’re new to service design or a seasoned practitioner who read the first edition cover to cover, there’s something new to gain here. This second edition continues to se...

What if AI isn't a disruptor but a repair tool? 

frog North America's Head of Service Design, Bethany Brown, joins Lou to explore the intersection of service design, operations, and AI. With roots in industrial design and global experience across firms like EPA and Engine, Bethany brings a unique lens to tackling large-scale organizational friction.

She walks us through a real-world case study from her upcoming talk at the Adv...

What do a Brazilian retail strategist and an Indian industrial designer have in common? A passion for transforming complex systems through service design—and a shared mission to push the profession forward. In this episode, Lou welcomes Gustavo Vieira and Shreya Dhawan, two of the curators behind the upcoming Advancing Service Design conference, for a behind-the-scenes look at how service design is evolving—and how they...

Jen Briselli’s journey into service design didn’t start with design at all—it started in a physics classroom. From studying the fundamental workings of the universe to teaching high schoolers how to grasp complex physics concepts, Jen’s interdisciplinary curiosity has always driven her path. That same intellectual agility eventually led her to discover information design, dive headfirst into Carnegie Mellon&...

Scott Zimmer’s career arc spans from dreaming big at Disney to reshaping design inside massive enterprises through acquisitions like Capital One (AdaptivePath) and Verizon (Moment Design)—and now, to scaling expert knowledge with AI through his startup, Tmpt.me. In this episode, Lou and Scott dig into what it takes to earn design a seat at the table, how to read a company’s culture before you join, and why experti...

What if your next big career move didn’t involve managing people—but managing impact? Catt Small joins Lou to unpack the rise of the staff designer: a role that's redefining what senior-level growth can look like for designers who want to lead without becoming managers.

Catt shares insights from her forthcoming Rosenfeld book, Staff Designer: Grow, Influence, and Lead as an Individual Contributor, where she draws on her...

If you’ve ever felt nervous holding a mic, or wondered how seasoned speakers make it look effortless, this episode is for you. Nathan Gold, professional speaker coach, and longtime collaborator with Rosenfeld Media, has helped presenters at every level find their voice and captivate audiences.

In his conversation with Lou, Nathan reflects on over a decade of working with Rosenfeld conference presenters—researchers, desi...