Interview with Xianghan Wang, Jing Yao, Rui Xi
Xianghan Wang is an award-winning XR/Motion Designer at Apple, known for crafting immersive experiences that merge art, technology, and cultural heritage.
Designer of the Day Interview
29 May 2025
We are a multidisciplinary team with backgrounds in motion design, product design, and AI-driven product development. Collectively, we have over 15 years of experience designing across immersive media, digital health, and emotionally intelligent technology. Xianghan Wang is currently an XR/Motion Designer at Apple with a focus on spatial UX. Jing Yao is a product designer at Klarity Health, using AI to improve healthcare accessibility. Rui Xi is a product creator and entrepreneur with a technical foundation from UC Berkeley EECS, and a passion for building emotionally resonant digital products. Together, we bring a cross-functional perspective to every project.
We each arrived at design from unique but converging paths. Xianghan began with a passion for art and storytelling, eventually specializing in immersive interaction and spatial motion design. Jing transitioned from fintech into healthcare, driven by a desire to create more humane digital systems. Rui came from a technical engineering background but was drawn to design for its power to humanize technology. What connects us is a shared belief that design is a tool for empathy, clarity, and cultural resonance.
Our top priorities are emotional resonance, accessibility, and cultural relevance. We start every project by deeply understanding user needs and emotional contexts. Our process is iterative and combines both digital tools (Figma, After Effects, Unity, Blender) and physical sketching or mapping when needed. Across all our work, we try to integrate human-centered values with future-forward technology.
Designing for us is a deeply empathetic process. We approach each project with curiosity and care, but always center our work around the user’s emotional journey. Rather than focusing on our own emotions, we strive to understand how others will feel when they engage with what we create. That human-centered focus gives us purpose and fuels our motivation to design responsibly and meaningfully.
Our diverse cultural and professional backgrounds allow us to see challenges from multiple dimensions—technical, emotional, and societal. Non-design skills like psychology, systems thinking, writing, and entrepreneurship have helped us push our design work further. We’ve been shaped by mentors and collaborators who value purpose over aesthetics.
We plan to grow as a team that continues building emotionally intelligent, culturally aware, and socially impactful design products. We’re currently expanding Livia and exploring projects around memory, grief, and emotional wellness. Our dream project would be a large-scale public experience—an immersive emotional archive that helps people connect across time and culture.
Design is not a straight line—allow yourself to explore different directions. Stay grounded in empathy and curiosity, not aesthetics alone. Don’t be afraid to build your own tools or define new design categories. Collaborate, listen, and let your values guide your process.
Success is built on iteration, reflection, and staying close to purpose. Our suggestion: treat each project as a conversation, not a statement. Share your process openly. Value rest and reflection. Design for impact, not just for portfolios.
Our days often begin with personal check-ins—sometimes even using Livia to reflect or set intentions. We then align as a team on project goals, dive into design or technical tasks, and leave space for critique and iteration. We keep creativity flowing with rituals like walks, collaborative sketching, or shared inspiration boards.
We observe trends but are not driven by them. Trends can be helpful signals, but we prioritize timeless values: clarity, care, and cultural sensitivity. Our inspiration comes from anthropology, psychology, speculative fiction, and human rituals more than from seasonal aesthetics.
A good design feels intuitive and emotionally aligned. For us, it’s when users don’t just understand how it works, but feel seen, supported, or inspired through the experience. We ask: does it serve a deeper purpose? Does it respect the user’s time and emotions? Can it adapt and endure?
A design is ready when the intent is clear and the experience feels emotionally balanced. We iterate until refinements no longer lead to meaningful improvement. That said, we believe most design is living—ready to evolve with new insights or changing needs.
As a team, Livia is our most significant project. It brings together all our values—emotional intelligence, cultural awareness, and human-AI interaction. We created it to offer companionship, self-reflection, and memory preservation in a time of emotional disconnection. Its success has affirmed our belief in emotionally centered design.
As a team, we deeply admire Lin Huiyin—a pioneering Chinese architect, designer, and poet. Her ability to blend artistic sensitivity with structural innovation, along with her commitment to preserving cultural heritage, continues to inspire us. Lin’s work transcended boundaries, embodying both elegance and resilience, and she remains a timeless symbol of creativity grounded in cultural identity.
We live and work across the U.S., influenced by both Eastern and Western cultures. Rituals like journaling, tea, or walking are part of our creative rhythm. Our work is often inspired by traditional philosophies, emotional memory, and the tension between stillness and modern speed.
We believe in respectful, flexible, and purpose-driven collaboration. Our philosophy is to design with empathy, build with intention, and lead with care. We choose collaborators who value openness and shared ownership. Our core values: clarity, compassion, curiosity.
We actively mentor young designers, judge competitions, and speak at educational and cultural events. Our design work also focuses on emotional and social themes—grief, memory, mental health—creating tools that support underserved needs in human experience. We believe design is a form of service.
Participating in the A' Design Award was incredibly rewarding. It gave us a platform to share Livia globally, receive valuable validation, and connect with a like-minded design community.
Interview about Livia Application Design Interview
Design Legend Interview
29 May 2025
We come from diverse but complementary backgrounds—motion design, product design, and engineering—united by a shared passion for human-centered innovation.
Xianghan Wang holds a Master’s degree in Integrated Digital Media from NYU and is currently an XR/Motion Designer at Apple. Her work focuses on immersive experiences and spatial computing, often blending culture and technology through motion.
Jing Yao is a product designer with a background in fintech and creative agencies. She now works at Klarity Health, where she leverages AI to transform healthcare systems into more intuitive and accessible experiences.
Rui Xi studied Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at UC Berkeley and is a product creator and entrepreneur. He brings a technical and strategic perspective to emotionally resonant consumer products, with one of his past creations reaching over 5 million MAUs.
Together, we draw from our interdisciplinary backgrounds to design emotionally intelligent, culturally reflective, and future-forward digital experiences.
Xianghan Wang holds a Master’s degree in Integrated Digital Media from NYU and is currently an XR/Motion Designer at Apple. Her work focuses on immersive experiences and spatial computing, often blending culture and technology through motion.
Jing Yao is a product designer with a background in fintech and creative agencies. She now works at Klarity Health, where she leverages AI to transform healthcare systems into more intuitive and accessible experiences.
Rui Xi studied Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at UC Berkeley and is a product creator and entrepreneur. He brings a technical and strategic perspective to emotionally resonant consumer products, with one of his past creations reaching over 5 million MAUs.
Together, we draw from our interdisciplinary backgrounds to design emotionally intelligent, culturally reflective, and future-forward digital experiences.
We are motivated by the belief that design can make the invisible visible—emotions, memories, culture. We became designers because we wanted to build experiences that resonate with people on a deeper level, not just functionally but emotionally and spiritually.
t was a clear choice—driven by a desire to combine art, empathy, and impact. Each of us pivoted from different disciplines, but we were drawn to design because it gave us a language to connect with others and shape meaningful futures.
We design emotionally intelligent digital experiences—AI companions, immersive wellness tools, and cultural XR narratives. We wish to design more cross-cultural, AI-augmented experiences that support memory, healing, and intergenerational connection.
Stay humble, listen deeply, and design from your values. Learn to critique yourself kindly but honestly. Design isn’t about tools—it’s about clarity, courage, and care. Let your work reflect who you are, not just what you can do.
A good designer solves problems. A great designer reveals truths. Great designers design with empathy, see the world through systems and stories, and inspire others to feel or think differently.
Good design is useful and intuitive. Really good design feels inevitable—like it couldn’t be any other way. It’s emotionally aligned, ethically considered, and culturally aware.
Good design improves quality of life. It reduces friction, preserves dignity, and adds emotional richness. It’s not a luxury—it’s a language that shapes how we live, learn, and connect.
We’d design tools for people who need support emotionally—interfaces that help preserve memory, support grief, and foster intergenerational storytelling. These voices deserve to be heard, remembered, and celebrated.
A multisensory museum that brings lost cultural memories to life through AI and XR—an emotional time capsule where visitors can walk through stories, rituals, and identities across generations.
Empathy with follow-through. We don’t just understand emotions—we translate them into form, flow, and feedback.
We are especially inspired by Lin Huiyin, a pioneering architect, designer, and poet. Her work represents a rare blend of structural rigor, artistic sensibility, and deep cultural preservation. She broke barriers in a male-dominated field and used design as a way to protect heritage while shaping modern aesthetics—a legacy that continues to guide our own values and vision.
We deeply admire the architectural restoration work led by Lin Huiyin, particularly her efforts in preserving historical landmarks like the Temple of Confucius and the Forbidden City’s architectural records. These projects were not only technically precise but also carried immense cultural and emotional weight. Her work reminds us that design is not just about creation—it is also about preservation, storytelling, and care.
Livia is our greatest collaboration so far. It’s not just a product—it’s a companion. It merges memory, voice, AI, and emotional well-being in a seamless, meaningful way.
Reflect constantly. Make space for solitude. Observe without judging. For us, journaling, reading psychology, and mentoring have all helped sharpen our intuition and ethics.
One of us might have become a therapist, another a writer, and another an AI researcher. All of us would still be exploring human behavior and emotion in some form.
Design is a form of care. It’s how we shape the invisible forces that influence people’s choices, feelings, and memories.
Users. Hearing from someone that our work helped them feel seen or supported has been the biggest motivation.
Curiosity, resilience, and emotional discipline. And a willingness to unlearn as much as we learn.
Navigating uncertainty, learning to self-advocate, and bridging cultural or language gaps in design thinking.
Not just as outcomes—but as processes, stories, and values. Let people see not just what you made, but why and how.
We’re expanding Livia into AR environments that let users walk through their memories. We're also prototyping grief-support tools rooted in cultural rituals.
To build emotional infrastructure—to design not just for utility, but for healing, remembering, and reconnecting.
To balance innovation with responsibility. To listen deeply. And to act not only with vision, but with integrity.
Design can dignify lives, surface hidden voices, and heal invisible wounds. When done with care, it becomes a civic act.
We’re developing a memory-based AR experience and a companion grief-support toolkit. Both blend technology with culture, ritual, and emotion.
Projects that deal with memory, loss, or identity. Because they require emotional courage—and offer emotional return.
More cross-cultural sensitivity, slower design cycles, and funding models that support emotional or social impact—not just monetization.
Toward emotional intelligence, biocentric systems, and memory-aware interfaces. Design is moving from screen to space, from interaction to presence.
From weeks to years—it depends on the emotional depth, not just scope. We iterate until the intention is clear and the experience feels whole.
?We start with a feeling. Then we map the emotional journey, identify user needs, and align on cultural context.
Design with care. Lead with clarity. Finish with purpose.
Visionary design sets trends. But ethical design resists trends. We try to ask: “What will still matter in ten years?”
Technology is our medium, not our driver. It enables—but it’s our values that shape what and why we build.
Figma, After Effects, Unity, Blender, Notion, and custom AI prototyping tools. Plus sketchbooks and whiteboards for grounding ideas.
They form the emotional language of a space or interface. We use them to guide mood, memory, and meaning.
We hope people ask, “What problem does this design solve?” It’s one of the most meaningful questions because it shifts the focus from surface aesthetics to purpose. Behind every visual or interaction decision, we aim to address a real emotional, cultural, or usability need. Design, for us, is always about intention.
“How did they get there?” We reverse-engineer the intention and imagine the team’s process.
Each other—and yes, deeply. Co-design creates richer, more layered results. It allows friction to become insight.
Our mentors, thoughtful users, and collaborators from other fields—psychologists, educators, cultural historians.
Two books that have deeply influenced our design thinking are The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin and Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari.
The Three-Body Problem expands our sense of scale, time, and technological imagination. It encourages us to think beyond the immediate interface and consider design in the context of civilization, uncertainty, and the unknown.
Sapiens reminds us that all design exists within human narratives—our myths, tools, and systems of meaning. It grounds our creative decisions in history, anthropology, and the psychological roots of human behavior.
Together, these books push us to design with both cosmic imagination and human insight.
The Three-Body Problem expands our sense of scale, time, and technological imagination. It encourages us to think beyond the immediate interface and consider design in the context of civilization, uncertainty, and the unknown.
Sapiens reminds us that all design exists within human narratives—our myths, tools, and systems of meaning. It grounds our creative decisions in history, anthropology, and the psychological roots of human behavior.
Together, these books push us to design with both cosmic imagination and human insight.
Through deliberate practice, reflection, collaboration, and building real things for real people.
We would love to meet and talk with Li Bai, the legendary Chinese poet. His ability to express emotion, imagination, and transcendence through language continues to inspire generations. As designers, we’re fascinated by how his poetry evokes space, movement, and feeling—qualities we also strive to capture in our immersive and emotional experiences. A conversation with him would be a journey through beauty, rhythm, and the timeless human spirit.
Grateful—but we don’t design for fame. Awards help amplify our message, but what matters most is the lives we touch.
Our favorite color is black—timeless, understated, and full of potential.
Our favorite place is Los Angeles, a city where ocean, desert, snow-capped mountains, and forests coexist. It’s a place of contrasts and creativity, which fuels our design thinking.
Favorite brand: Apple—for its commitment to design excellence, innovation, and emotional clarity.
Our favorite place is Los Angeles, a city where ocean, desert, snow-capped mountains, and forests coexist. It’s a place of contrasts and creativity, which fuels our design thinking.
Favorite brand: Apple—for its commitment to design excellence, innovation, and emotional clarity.
During early testing for one of our emotionally aware AI projects, we accidentally triggered a bug where the AI started enthusiastically reflecting on the wrong user’s diary entries in a live demo. It confused two testers and began recalling memories that weren’t theirs—resulting in a mix of awkward laughter and panic on our side. While it was a bit embarrassing at the time, it reminded us how powerful—and delicate—designing for memory and emotion can be. Ever since, we triple-check context tracking in anything remotely personalized!
When a user says “I feel understood”—that’s everything. We also keep daily journals and inspire each other with small moments of joy.
We were always observing, sketching, organizing, or building—even if we didn’t yet call it design. The desire to shape the world was always there.
We hope design will be more symbiotic—with nature, memory, and collective emotion. Perhaps the best designs will be invisible: intuitive, kind, and regenerative.
We design with heart. Every detail you see was made with care, and every story you interact with holds a piece of something real. Thank you for feeling it.
Designer Interview
29 May 2025
Xianghan: I started with a deep interest in both art and technology, which led me to study digital media. My journey has evolved from graphic and motion design into spatial and immersive storytelling. The desire to bridge human emotion with interactive technology made design a natural path.
Jing: My path began with fintech, but I found purpose in using design to make healthcare more human. I’ve always been fascinated by how good design can reduce friction and deliver comfort.
Rui: I come from an engineering background, but design became my language to humanize technology. I’ve always been drawn to emotionally resonant experiences, and designing them became my passion.
Jing: My path began with fintech, but I found purpose in using design to make healthcare more human. I’ve always been fascinated by how good design can reduce friction and deliver comfort.
Rui: I come from an engineering background, but design became my language to humanize technology. I’ve always been drawn to emotionally resonant experiences, and designing them became my passion.
We collaborated as independent creators across design, product, and engineering disciplines. While we come from different organizations—Apple, Klarity Health, and consumer tech startups—our shared values around emotional design and impact-driven innovation brought us together for Livia. The project represents a synergy of our expertise and vision for emotionally intelligent technology.
Design is the bridge between intention and experience. It's not just about aesthetics, but about empathy, clarity, and impact. Good design anticipates needs and communicates meaning—whether through interface, motion, or voice.
We’re passionate about designing emotionally engaging and culturally aware digital experiences—especially those that live at the intersection of AI, immersive media, and well-being. Projects like Livia, which combine storytelling, utility, and emotional intelligence, are particularly meaningful to us.
We are most drawn to designs that seamlessly integrate cultural depth with technological innovation. Our favorite works often reinterpret traditional practices, rituals, or emotions through a modern digital lens—whether using AI, XR, or interactive media. These designs allow us to preserve and evolve cultural heritage while creating emotionally resonant, forward-thinking experiences. The fusion of past and future, of meaning and mechanism, is what excites us most.
Xianghan: My first professional design was a motion graphics package for a major product launch at Ogilvy, where I learned how visual storytelling could shape brand perception.
Jing: I designed onboarding flows for a fintech app, which taught me the importance of simplicity and user trust.
Rui: I built an AI-powered productivity tool at my first startup—balancing usability and system logic was a foundational experience for me.
Jing: I designed onboarding flows for a fintech app, which taught me the importance of simplicity and user trust.
Rui: I built an AI-powered productivity tool at my first startup—balancing usability and system logic was a foundational experience for me.
We are especially passionate about immersive and interactive platforms—XR, conversational AI, and spatial interfaces. These technologies allow us to move beyond the screen and craft experiences that feel alive, intuitive, and emotionally connected.
We feel most creative when we are engaging with others and immersing ourselves in different cultures. Whether it's through deep conversations, collaborative brainstorming, or exploring unfamiliar cultural perspectives, these moments spark new ways of thinking and open doors to unexpected ideas. Creativity for us is often a response to human connection and cultural resonance.
We focus on emotional clarity, interaction flow, and long-term resonance. A design should not only function but also feel—guiding users intuitively while leaving a lasting impression. We pay close attention to how design decisions impact both utility and emotional response.
It’s a blend of curiosity, focus, and anticipation. There’s a sense of responsibility—we want our designs to be meaningful. At the same time, there’s joy in exploration, in shaping something from abstract ideas into tangible experiences that others can feel and engage with.
There’s a deep sense of fulfillment when a design comes to life—especially when it resonates with people. Seeing others emotionally connect with an idea that once lived only in our minds is both humbling and inspiring. It’s also a moment of reflection, where we learn and grow from the user feedback.
A successful design is one that feels natural, solves a real need, and leaves an emotional imprint. It’s not only about how something works, but how it makes people feel and think. If a design can shift perception or create a sense of connection, it has succeeded.
We look at intent, execution, and impact. Is the idea meaningful? Is it executed with clarity and care? And does it make a difference—functionally, emotionally, or culturally? These are the criteria we value most.
Designers have a responsibility to be intentional and ethical. Our work shapes behavior, so we must consider the social, emotional, and environmental consequences of what we create. Whether it's advocating for inclusivity, preserving culture, or minimizing digital and material waste, design should serve the future, not just the present.
Design is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary and human-centered. The future lies in experiences that merge technology with empathy—AI, XR, and generative tools will be important, but only if guided by purpose and cultural understanding. We believe design will move beyond aesthetics and interfaces into shaping how people live, feel, and connect.
Xianghan’s most recent exhibition was at NYCxDesign Week, where she showcased works exploring the fusion of traditional culture and emerging technology. As a team, we hope our next exhibition will be at the A' Design Museum, featuring Livia. It would be a meaningful opportunity to share our vision of emotionally resonant AI design with a global audience.
We draw inspiration from cultural rituals, emotional psychology, literature, and emerging technology. We stay open to unfamiliar ideas and let curiosity guide us.
Our style is immersive, emotional, and culturally reflective. We are drawn to meaningful symbolism, fluid motion, and tactile interaction—whether digital or physical. We explore this style because it allows us to reimagine ancient wisdom through modern tools, and create experiences that feel both timeless and future-oriented.
We are currently based in California, the U.S., but our cultural roots—spanning Chinese traditions, Eastern philosophies, and global perspectives—deeply influence our work. Living in a multicultural environment is a strength: it allows us to create work that bridges East and West. The challenge is balancing authenticity with innovation, but that tension often leads to our most creative outcomes.
We collaborate closely with product teams, researchers, and engineers, bringing a design-thinking mindset that integrates storytelling, user empathy, and technical feasibility. Whether working in-house or independently, we build trust through clear communication and shared vision.
Designers should not only have strong portfolios, but who also care about users. A good designer is a good listener—someone who can translate complexity into clarity. Invite them into early-stage conversations and give space for experimentation.
We begin with empathy—understanding the user’s emotional landscape and cultural context. Then we sketch concepts, build interactive prototypes, and test often. We use a layered approach: designing visuals, sounds, and interactions in parallel to create a cohesive, immersive experience.
An L-shaped height-adjustable desk – it supports both focused work and creative flow, adapting to different postures throughout the day.
An ergonomic chair – designed for long hours of sitting without compromising comfort or posture.
A vertical ergonomic mouse – it reduces wrist strain and reflects thoughtful human-centered design.
A soft ambient light clock – it gently simulates sunrise and sunset to support healthier sleep cycles.
A VR headset—our portal to immersive imagination.
An ergonomic chair – designed for long hours of sitting without compromising comfort or posture.
A vertical ergonomic mouse – it reduces wrist strain and reflects thoughtful human-centered design.
A soft ambient light clock – it gently simulates sunrise and sunset to support healthier sleep cycles.
A VR headset—our portal to immersive imagination.
A typical day starts with a quiet morning—sometimes just stretching and chatting briefly with Livia, our AI companion, to reflect on how we’re feeling or what’s ahead. Then we dive into work, which can range from design sprints and prototyping to research or motion development. We often collaborate across time zones, so afternoons are filled with meetings or creative reviews. In the evening, we wind down with reading, walking, or journaling—often using Livia again to process the day or capture small thoughts we don’t want to lose. It’s a balance of structure and space for reflection, which keeps our creativity grounded.
Don’t rush to find your “style.” Instead, follow what emotionally moves you. Learn from disciplines outside design—philosophy, psychology, history. And remember: your voice as a designer matters most when it serves others with empathy and care.
The positive: you get to create meaning, shape culture, and impact people’s lives.
The challenge: creative burnout and the pressure to constantly innovate. But with the right team and mission, design becomes a sustainable, lifelong pursuit.
The challenge: creative burnout and the pressure to constantly innovate. But with the right team and mission, design becomes a sustainable, lifelong pursuit.
Design with intention. Every element should have a purpose—emotionally, functionally, or symbolically.
Empathy, storytelling, systems thinking, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Technical skills are important, but the ability to synthesize complex ideas into clear, resonant experiences is key.
We use Figma, After Effects, Blender, and Unreal Engine for design and prototyping.
We structure our time around creative energy rather than fixed hours. High-focus tasks are done in the morning or late evening, while collaborative work happens mid-day.
It depends on the complexity and scope. Some concepts can be rapidly prototyped within a week, while emotionally nuanced experiences—like conversational AI or immersive environments—can take months of iteration, testing, and refinement.
We’re often asked, “How do you make technology feel human?” It’s a question we love—because it gets to the heart of what we do: creating emotionally intelligent, culturally grounded, and intuitive digital experiences.
Xianghan: Leading the motion design for Apple Vision Pro’s user education taught me how clarity and emotion can coexist in spatial interfaces.
Jing: Designing healthcare flows at Klarity Health showed me how deeply good design can affect access and dignity.
Rui: Building emotionally resonant AI products from the ground up taught me how design, tech, and empathy must work together to create real impact.
Jing: Designing healthcare flows at Klarity Health showed me how deeply good design can affect access and dignity.
Rui: Building emotionally resonant AI products from the ground up taught me how design, tech, and empathy must work together to create real impact.
As individuals, we've worked with companies including Burberry, Red Bull, Klarity Health, and early-stage startups. Across these collaborations, we’ve built tools, products, and experiences for millions of users—focusing on trust, clarity, and emotional connection.
We enjoy designing experiences that merge cultural insight, emotional intelligence, and cutting-edge technology. Projects that help people feel understood, reflect on their emotions, or reconnect with their cultural roots are especially meaningful to us.
We hope to expand Livia into a broader emotional well-being ecosystem—integrating it with AR, memory recall features, and long-term companionship. We also plan to exhibit more works globally and continue exploring how AI and immersive media can serve culture and humanity.
We work as a cross-disciplinary team. Each of us brings different strengths—visual design, UX, product strategy, technical development—and together we shape the experience holistically. Collaboration is at the core of our process.
Yes—we’re currently exploring an AR extension of Livia, where memories can be visualized and interacted with in physical space. It’s part of our broader vision for emotionally aware AI that supports reflection, healing, and presence.
You can reach us directly through Livia at admin@hi-livia.com.
We’d just like to add that meaningful design is never about tools alone—it’s about values, culture, and care. In a world increasingly shaped by AI and automation, we believe it’s more important than ever for designers to center emotion, ethics, and human connection in everything we create.