A few days ago, I walked into a bank. I wasn’t there to observe design, but the designer in me quietly woke up.

In the corner, I noticed an elderly gentleman, a little rushed, a little anxious. He must have been retired — his steps carried both hurry and worry. He went straight to the counter and asked for his account statement.

The executive, polite and efficient, told him in Kannada: “No need for a print sir, it will come on your WhatsApp.”

He looked lost. He had a smartphone, but admitted: “I don’t know. I’m not comfortable.” His voice had urgency: “My son has sent money. I just want to see the balance.”

At that moment, I didn’t see a “user.”

I saw my own father in that elderly man.

The executive did her best — registering his number, explaining OTPs, showing him how to check WhatsApp messages. But the language was still technical: credited, debited, OTP. Cold!!

Unfamiliar. Far from his world. And in that moment, I felt it deeply:

👉 Even as a UX Designer, I have been part of this exclusion.

We design journeys, interfaces, and now even AI systems — but too often, we started design for “users” and forget the human being behind the screen.

Why this matters now:

We live in a time where technology is racing forward — AI, LLMs, automation. We are building tools that are smart, powerful, and efficient. But the question is:

Are they human?

— Can my father — or that elderly man in the bank — use AI with ease, without fear?

— Can they trust it with their privacy?

— Can they talk to it as though it were a good old friend, not a cold machine?

This is my dream for design:

  • Technology that listens with patience, not hurry.
  • Interfaces that speak in warm, simple words — not jargon.
  • AI that accepts multiple ways of expression: voice, sight, hearing, touch.
  • Systems that protect trust, dignity, and privacy, not just data.

And I sincerely believe: in this era of AI, such a mindshift must happen at every level of an organization.

Not just designers, but leaders, managers, and teams must embrace transparency, security, inclusion and privacy. Because at the end of the day, trust is not only emotional — it has real financial implications too.

A conscious shift

That is why, from today, I am changing my title here on LinkedIn. I will no longer call myself a UX Designer.

I will call myself an HX Designer.

It may seem like a small change — just two letters. But words matter. They shape how we think and what we create. And I want to carry this reminder in my identity : design for humans, not just users.

I know this is a journey, and I am still walking in AI era— step by step. But I share this today because I believe many of us have seen such moments, where technology forgot the human touch.

🙏 I’d love to hear yours: When did you last feel technology missed your heart, even if it solved your task? And when did it feel like a gentle companion?

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