Many organisations are investing heavily in AI products, yet struggle with adoption and real-world impact. Drawing on experience across product, service design, and AI initiatives, this article explores why design capability is often engaged too late, how that affects outcomes, and what it reveals about the way AI products and services are being shaped today.

AI is moving fast, but the products that truly stick have one thing in common: they’re designed with real people in mind. Drawing on recent AI product work, I share eight experience-led principles that turn clever technology into tools people actually trust and use. From research and workflow design to trust, adoption and meaningful measurement, this article explores what it really takes to move an AI product from hype to habit.

Traditionally, Experience Strategy has shaped how organisations attract, serve, and retain their customers — mapping journeys, uncovering pain points, and turning insights into meaningful improvements. But today, those same principles are proving just as powerful inside organisations. As businesses face new challenges around talent, technology, and transformation, they’re realising that the experience of employees is equally critical to performance, culture, and competitiveness.