2027 speakers
$299
early-birD
Main passes only
through November 8
$159
NEED-BASED
Limited quantities
eligibility required
team
tickets
for groups of 5-40+
save up to 60%
Keynotes
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Torrey Podmajersky
President, Catbird Content
Get paid vs. be good: It’s not that clear cut
Prove your value doing evil corporate things—or live your values and become unemployable? Torrey Podmajersky joins us to talk about why that’s a false binary—and how to navigate these tensions instead.
Topics: values, careers in transition, repositioning UX
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Dan Hon
Principal, Very Little Gravitas
God damn it, you’ve got to be kind
Suddenly we’re all working alongside machines pretending to be people, and people pretending to be machines. Now what? Dan Hon argues that the future of design starts with remembering what it means to be a person with a point of view.
Topics: working relationships, values, staying human
Main stage speakers
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Megan Blocker
Senior director of research and insights, Justworks
Ambiguity is our superpower. Let’s not waste it.
Topics: user research, repositioning UX, AI transformation
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Natalie Dunbar
Founder and CEO, The Content Practice Architect
The original LLMs: What marginalized communities already know about AI
Topics: inclusive design, responsible AI
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Rosa Vieira de Almeida
UX content designer, Moodle
Staying with the tension: What UX cannot solve
Topics: open source, user trust, repositioning UX
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Venessa Bennett
Global director of UX, Dye & Durham
Topics: design leadership, user research, repositioning UX
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Caitlin Steele
Narrative futurist, Thoughtful Apes
Topics: futures methods, storytelling, product strategy
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Dan Brown
Principal, Curious Squid
From boxes and arrows to puddles and streams: IA in the age of ambiguity
Topics: information architecture, evolving design methods
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Ryan Hansz
Senior designer and researcher, Nava PBC
AI, public benefits, and me: Designing for ambiguity at every level
Topics: public sector design, responsible AI, co-design
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Michaela Hackner
Senior director of UX, Indeed
There was no playbook, so I wrote my own
Topics: design leadership, careers in transition, AI transformation
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Uday Gajendar
Principal strategist, Critical Design Ventures LLC
Spiral to compass: Naming the AI and SaaS forces pulling you apart
Topics: repositioning UX, responsible AI, design leadership
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Lena Shyryna
Head of content design, Kyiv Digital
Designing through war: What still matters when everything falls apart
Topics: public sector design, designing for crisis
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Katie Kovalcin
Distinguished designer, Gusto
When everything and nothing has changed
Topics: AI transformation, evolving design methods, working relationships
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Natalia Marmolejo
Design lead
Talk title to come
Topics: to come
the panel: Exit Interview
“Maybe I should just quit UX and become a plumber.” If thoughts like this have crossed your mind, you’re not alone. Hear short talks about what “leaving UX” has looked like for three different designers, plus a lively panel discussion designed to help everyone remember their options—whether you choose to stay or go.
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Vinay Patel
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Yoko Sakao Ohama
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Tali Dolsten-Kuhel
Then: UX and content
Now: LMSW psychotherapistValues-aligned career: Insights from a therapist who left UX
Topics: values, burnout, careers in transition
Workshop facilitators
Workshops will be held on Friday, February 5. These interactive, deep-dive sessions are capped at 40 people each, and tickets must be booked in advance. Get all the info on our workshops.
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Ryan Rumsey
Founder, CDO School
They will never get UX. You’re gonna win anyway.
Topics: repositioning UX, design leadership, influence
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Kyle Alexander
Designer and writer. Head of design, stealth startup
Critique is the craft: Leading AI model design with a UX lens
Topics: AI model design, evolving design methods, responsible AI
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Sophia Prater
UX strategy consultant and coach, OOUX
Moving upstream: Systems design for business operations
Topics: systems design, repositioning UX, evolving design methods
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Sara Wachter-Boettcher
CEO, Active Voice. Co-host, Throughline
Topics: storytelling, influence, design leadership
opening showcase: New stories for a new era
Prove your value. Please your stakeholders. Put all your passion into UX. These tired old scripts aren’t serving us—so what if we let them go? Hear short, unfiltered talks from these speakers at our opening lightning talk event the week before Throughline.
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Hertje Brodersen
Strategic designer
Good enough is better: Why letting go of merit makes us better human-centered designers
Topics: values, inclusive design, sense of identity
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Peter Bossio
Creative director and innovation strategist
Stop solving the problem you were given
Topics: design leadership, repositioning UX, influence
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Jess Dale
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Krissi Xenakis
Director of product design, Vanna Health
Topics: repositioning UX, influence, design leadership
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Adriana Harper
Content design and strategy leader
Grieving the discipline we trained for—and building the one that comes next
Topics: sense of identity, reclaiming agency, careers in transition