surinder.design
01/positioningwhat I ship · who it’s for

I design products that are AI-native from day one.

Research, interface, and shipped React code. One person, 4 weeks. The Figma file is a refinement layer. The deliverable runs in production.

role
Agentic AI Design Engineer
for
Funded founders building AI-native
based
Remote · global
+67%
revenue
Puffy · Dubai
$1B+
brand revenue
as design lead
12K+
designers
trained · mentored
18+
yrs shipping
senior UX · 2007
02/what I ship
3 tiers · week-by-week

Three ways in. A sprint to ship one AI flow, a flagship to design the whole product, and an embedded partnership for the long game.

AI-Native Product Design
8 to 12 weeks · design through prototype · dev-ready handoff · Q3 2026 · by enquiry
from $45,000
8 to 12 weeks · scope-dependent
what unfolds5 phases · across 8 to 12 weeks
phase 01DecodePersona + problem research. Jobs to be done. Sharp problem brief.
phase 02ArchitectFlows + information architecture. AI behavior model across the surface.
phase 03DesignWireframes to high-fidelity screens. Documented system: components, tokens, states.
phase 04PrototypeClickable prototype. Tested with real users before code gets written.
phase 05HandoffDev-ready handoff package. Working session with your engineering team.

Weeks 9 to 12 absorb deeper research, additional surface area, or extended prototype iteration when scope requires.

Best for: Funded founders building an AI-native product that needs to be figured out before it gets built. Common when your engineers are native, Flutter, or mobile and build from design.
03/selected work4 projects · case studies

Four projects that show the methodology in production. More case studies shipping through 2026.

04 / philosophy

The three pillars behind every engagement, from deep insights to business impact.

19 years of senior product experience, applied with the AI tools that ship today. Faster results, no theatrics.

Exceptional user experiences are born from a blend of strategic insight, rigorous critical thinking, and a profound understanding of user needs.
the belief
01.
Design + Engineering
I design in code, not handoffs.

Figma files don't ship. React components do. I treat the design system as source code from day one, so there's no translation loss between what I design and what users see.

02.
AI as a Layer
Conversational, not decorative.

AI belongs where it earns its place. I build conversational interfaces that retrieve, reason, and cite — not chatbots bolted onto static pages. Citation-ready. Retrieval-aware. Quiet when silence serves better.

03.
Shipped, Not Shown
Live code, measurable outcomes.

A prototype isn't a product. I measure launches by conversion, activation, and retention — not Dribbble shots. Every engagement ends with numbers you can show your board.

01 · Design + Engineering

Figma files don't ship. React components do. I treat the design system as source code from day one, so there's no translation loss between what I design and what users see.

process

The five-step path, start to ship.

Scroll — each step crosses the axis as you move through the process.

Step 1 of 5

Decode

Goal

Understand the business, the user, and the jobs-to-be-done before touching pixels.

AI in Action

Claude reads transcripts, support tickets, and analytics dumps to surface the questions users actually ask — not the ones we assume they do.

Outcome

A one-page problem brief with the three questions the product has to answer. Shared with the founder before week one ends.

05/about
Agentic AI Design Engineer · 19 years
Surinder Thakur · Agentic AI Design Engineer

I'm Surinder. For 19 years I was a UX designer — researching, drawing screens, handing off Figma files, then waiting three weeks for something close to what I imagined to ship.

Now I'm an Agentic AI Design Engineer. I ship the code too. Fintech, luxury DTC, healthcare, AI-native startups. I've led teams, built design systems, launched products that generated real revenue.

Then I went solo. Started taking on funded SaaS founders who needed one person instead of an agency. This site is the proof.

AI Design

Intelligence

ProUX

Also the founder of ProUX — AI-powered UX scanner with 350+ expert guidelines. Ship better designs in half the time.

proux.design
career · click to expand
9 months

Founder · Agentic AI Design Engineer · ProUX

Remote · Global

Founded ProUX in 2025. AI design workflows, prompt patterns, and component systems. Alongside ProUX, taking on AI Flow Sprints, AI-Native Product Design engagements, and Embedded Design Partner retainers for funded founders. One senior brain across research, design, AI behavior, and code where the engagement calls for it.

Engagements span fintech, healthcare, luxury DTC, and AI-native startups. Ship model varies by engagement. A working AI flow on staging for the Sprint, a tested prototype handed off dev-ready for the Product Design, or week-by-week work on the Embedded retainer.
Certificate of Quality Assurance

My 100% Quality Assurance on Design Aesthetics & Usability.

19 years of hands-on UX expertise across research, systems, and shipped code.

I do the deep, upfront work that makes the difference. Strategies that work, sites that ship.

If you're after tangible results and a boost for your user experience, let's chat and make it happen.

06/proofvideo + written testimonials · click any video to play
★★★★★Rated 5 stars by 300+ founders

Hear it from the founders.

Unscripted clips from the people who signed the checks — and written reviews from two decades of shipped work.

★★★★★
Consistently came up with out of the box design solutions and took ownership of them end to end. Designs implemented have had positive impact on user experience and bottom line growth.
+67% conversions
Arthur Andreasyan
Founder · Puffy
★★★★★
I've worked with Surinder for nearly a decade. He's become both a trusted friend and the most talented UI/UX engineer on my team. He consistently delivers on time — often ahead of schedule — and his professionalism is unmatched. Surinder led the design for our Medellín launch, producing exceptional user experiences that took the product to market in record time.
Launched in 3 months
Carlos Arias
Founder · Medellín
★★★★★
While Surinder is a very talented designer, what I appreciate most about him professionally is his tenacity and dependability. If he says he will do something, there's no question that it will get done.
+30% conversions
Avin Kline
CEO · Lucyd
07/FAQ· 10 questions

Frequently asked questions

If you have a question or just want to say hello before you make a commitment, please get in touch.

updated 2026-05-23

  • One senior designer who covers research, product design, AI behavior architecture, and code where the engagement calls for it. The deliverable is either a working AI flow live on staging or a designed product with a clickable prototype handed off dev-ready, depending on the engagement. The role exists because AI-native products break the old separation of design and engineering. When the interface is conversational and the behavior is probabilistic, the prompt architecture is part of the product design.

  • A flow is one path through your product. The onboarding that runs through an assistant. A copilot moment. A smart search. The CRO agent in your store. The AI Flow Sprint takes the single most important flow and ships it live on staging in 4 weeks for $15,000 fixed. AI-Native Product Design takes the whole product surface. Research, flows, the AI behavior model, every screen, a clickable prototype your users test before code gets written. 8 to 12 weeks, from $45,000, handed off dev-ready. Many engagements start with the Sprint and grow into the full Product Design.

  • Both, depending on the engagement. The AI Flow Sprint ships a working build live on a staging URL your engineers can fork. AI-Native Product Design ships design through a working prototype, handed off dev-ready, because at that scale your engineers usually build the production app themselves. Often they are native, Flutter, or mobile developers who build from design files. The Embedded Design Partner can do either, depending on what your roadmap needs. Figma is a tool, not the deliverable.

  • Three engagements, USD, with English scope. AI Flow Sprint ($15,000, 4 weeks) ships one important AI flow live on a staging URL your engineers can fork. AI-Native Product Design (from $45,000, 8 to 12 weeks) designs the whole product through a clickable prototype, handed off dev-ready. Embedded Design Partner (from $8,000 per month, rolling) is a senior design brain on your product every week, without the cost or wait of a full-time hire. Most founders start with the Sprint, move into the Product Design when scope grows, and switch to Embedded when the work becomes ongoing.

  • 4 weeks for the AI Flow Sprint. The single flow locks in week 1 with a one-page brief by Friday, design in week 2, build on staging in week 3, refine and hand off in week 4, with 2 weeks of post-ship support. AI-Native Product Design runs 8 to 12 weeks across five phases: decode, architect, design, prototype, handoff. The Embedded Design Partner starts within a week of signing and runs on a weekly cadence agreed up front. Most founders see something working in their hands inside the first month, regardless of engagement.

  • or browse the full /answers archive →
07/book a call2 slots · next 8 weeks

Tell me where you are. And where you want to go in 4 weeks.

No pitch deck. A few lines by email and we’ll know in 30 minutes whether a sprint fits.

sprint
4 weeks · $18,000 · React, design system, llms.txt
slots
2 available · Q3 2026
reply
< 24h on weekdays

Email-first booking. Clicking opens your mail client with a short template. Hit send and I’ll reply within 24h with available times.