Her Story
About Apeksha
Apeksha Jain is a Senior Product Designer at Adobe, where she works on the Firefly Enterprise team, helping shape AI-powered creative products for enterprise users. With more than six years of experience in product and UX design, she has built a reputation as a multidisciplinary designer who combines expertise in artificial intelligence, human-computer interaction, and user-centered design. Holding a Master of Design in Human-Computer Interaction from California College of the Arts, Apeksha specializes in designing conversational AI experiences and developing intuitive interfaces that make complex technologies accessible, effective, and engaging for users.
Her career reflects a unique journey across multiple design disciplines. Originally trained in architecture with additional studies in game and interactive media design, Apeksha began her professional path creating immersive experiences before transitioning into digital product design. She gained experience designing for startups, healthcare, fintech, blockchain, and enterprise AI platforms through roles at companies including Typeface, Work & Co, and Create Protocol. Throughout her work, she has contributed to AI-powered products, design systems, enterprise software, and emerging technologies, bringing together strategic thinking, rapid prototyping, user research, and visual design to solve complex product challenges.
Beyond her professional responsibilities, Apeksha is an active mentor, educator, and advocate for the design community. She mentors aspiring designers through platforms such as ADPList and regularly shares insights on breaking into product design, building portfolios, and designing AI-driven experiences. Passionate about accessibility and inclusive design, she believes technology should create safe, empowering, and emotionally resonant experiences for diverse audiences. Whether collaborating with cross-functional teams at Adobe, speaking with students, or mentoring emerging professionals, Apeksha remains committed to advancing the future of human-centered AI while helping the next generation of designers thrive.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Apeksha
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Just don't stop. My brother gave this advice to me, and it comes from a broader understanding that getting into the tech market nowadays is so hard, especially as an immigrant. But you just cannot stop. You have to keep going at it. You have to have horse vision and look straight ahead at what your goal is, and eventually you're going to get it. Don't let any doubts seep in, and just keep working towards your goal. I also believe that your biggest competition is yourself, and I grew up thinking that is true. I just wanted to be better than myself every day, and that's what I tell everyone else.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
You're better than everyone else, and you need to get out of the imposter syndrome because it's just in your head. I mentor on ADP List, and I speak mostly with women - I think 95% of the people I speak to are fresh grad women. The common pattern that I see is that they are underconfident about their skill set, and that's not something I see in men. Women seek help more because they feel the need for help and feel they're not doing well enough. But you need to believe in yourself. You know how they say your biggest competition is yourself? I grew up thinking that is true, and I just wanted to be better than myself every day. That's what I tell everyone else.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge in my field of designing for AI products is that the entire UX paradigm, the user experience paradigm in this space, is completely new. There are no standards, there are no pathways. This really has to be thought through from the very get-go, really understanding human behavior. We're basically setting up new standards. Earlier, the standards we've had in UX have been the same for the past few decades, but it's a whole new revolution of how products behave and interact with humans. The thing I work on the most is conversational AI, and it's really challenging to understand the human needs and how they interact, what they expect. Also, in the past few years, user tolerance has gone down. So to ensure that they really stay on and go on with the experience, we have to make it very less cognitively heavy for them. That is the main problem that we face in this field right now.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would say everything you do has to be done wholeheartedly. I personally believe that. I am also a painter, and if it wasn't for the money, I would've definitely been a painter. I started my career with architecture, and there the responsibility was to ensure what I design is a safe space for the inhabitants, not just physically, but they are also feeling the feelings that they're meant to feel. Like if it's an office, they feel productive. If it's a house, they should feel comfortable and be able to do the things they want to do. A kitchen should feel lively - you would want to be creative there. I bring the same values to product design. Everything I design should be very easy for all sorts of users that we can have, not just the most optimal user. Accessibility is such a big part of what I do. I'm always finding the most optimal solutions that can serve the broader audience, and they feel motivated and delighted to do their job.
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