2 UX Researchers
2 UX Designers
2 UI Designers
3 Usability Testers
Development Team - Front and Backend
A youth assistance application helping them develop daily skills that can even help them inside and outside of school circumstances. Initially it was a question that arose from the popularity of AI over the last couple of years and in the fields it could be used in.
Google Analytics from the past 5 years shows that the current website had a very low percentage of return users (7.8%) and a high bounce rate (41.26%) with the average session duration of less than a minute.
Initial research showed the rise in trying to incorporate AI as an assistant in a lot of app and with this curiosity, we tried to solve a gap that hadn’t yet been filled. A key requirements from the stakeholder interviews turned out to be a form of AI we wanted to use more to make it accessible was the vocal assistant along with the text version. During market analysis, one of the key conclusions we obtained was to target the youth audience in developing certain life skills which most had some issue with in and beyond schools.
On further qualitative analysis and secondary quantitative analysis, we found a niche to focus on to help assist the youth. From the youth we spoke to, we tried to figure out what problems they face, what resources do they use and what would help them improve on the skill. We also tried to see what type of platforms they general used outside of education. From this, one of the key conclusions us as UX researchers and Designers proposed was gamification of the platform to enhance the learning experience and also bring in a regular attraction and usage of the application without making it complex and boring.
Planning & Brainstorming
Competitor Analysis
With this as the base, we started wire-framing the application and taking note of the key features and resources to provide. The development team also started to simultaneously work on the AI backend testing and development. On the design forefront, we used Figjam to ideate, and then the initial wireframes were developed in both the mobile and web versions. Another UI designer developed a basic brand kit and the brand logo but once that was finalized, I worked on multiple iterations of the UI of the mobile and web versions. As I developed some of the game mechanics into the wireframes and prototypes. One of the other UX researchers fine-tuned the game mechanism to have a better flow. But at this stage, some of the UX team had an idea to modify the content as well to be more appropriate to the current generation of youth using Gen Z and Gen Alpha terminologies and language instead of the formal lingo. So we started to modify the content to appropriate it to the target audience.
Simultaneously, our UX team also tried to incorporate using UX AI platforms like UX Pilot and Relume to have faster implementation of the webapp on the front-end and also make the whole responsive design implementation smoother.
Another idea I proposed was having some form of incorporating a guiding assistant or character that helps the youth navigate through their lessons and journey. This began our development of multiple characters of different forms. Inspired by visual illustrations, I created multiple iterations of two guiding character, refining its personality, accessibility, and integration into user flows. These iterations, I created, were designed using AI platforms like ChatGPT and Meshy AI and then had provided touch ups using Illustrator and Canva. As we have 2 guiding characters, I created 2 separate versions of the platform with different sets of imagery and instructional media. These were then implemented in development.
With the implementation in progress, we started recruiting the youth, around the world but mostly concentrated in the US. We formed a group of user testers to alpha test our application over a period of 2 weeks for the first round. Since there were from different locations, we conducted this testing remotely with some contact and regular updates. We provided them with a basic understanding of how they could go about obtaining the application and letting them know how we wanted them to use it like what they could test and asked for feedback. In return we were providing them with a certification and some hampers. Another Usability Tester and I took on the role of keeping up a daily interaction with them via Whatsapp groups and gaining micro-feedbacks from Multiple Choice Questionnaires and clarifications/ problems they faced. I proposed a form of leaderboard to have an enthusiastic competition to keep them involved. At the end, we also had designed a detailed questionnaire to figure out where and what we could improve and what was already working. We also finalized the character support design and use.
From the results we gained from the Usability testing, we also went into another round of modifications and then planned for further iterations with testing. Although I left the project before public launch, I was part of the critical research, ideation, and prototyping stages. Early testing feedback showed strong engagement with the assistant concept and validated the importance of accessibility features we proposed.
While I couldn’t see the final launch, the process taught me how to integrate AI thoughtfully for youth audiences, and how character-driven design can enhance accessibility and engagement. It further taught me on how to lead a design project and take my stance on opinions but also convince the stakeholders of the decisions to be made to take the project further.
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