UX & Product Development in the AI Era

AI is transforming how we build, design, and interact with products. But with change comes new challenges—rethinking user experiences, building trust with automation, and navigating a shifting product development landscape.

Join us for an evening of insights and conversation with Rakshana Balakrishnan and Swarna Pandu, as they explore two powerful topics:

5:30-5.50: Registration and networking
5:50 - 6:00: Welcome talk from our ambassadors: Swarna Pandu (UX Researcher @ Boehringer Ingelheim)
6:00 - 6:30: Talk 1 by Rakshana Balakrishnan (Product Leader @ AWS)
" UX in the AI Era: Rethinking UX Design for Next-gen Cloud Products with AI Agents"
AI agents are rapidly becoming more prevalent in cloud products, transforming how users interact, discover value, and build trust. The success of these integrations depends on striking the right balance between automation and user control, while tackling the challenges of trust, bias, and transparency. In this talk, we’ll explore how product leaders and designers can rethink UX when embedding AI agents into cloud products, while straddling usability and transparency.

What you’ll learn:

• How AI agents are reshaping user expectations in cloud products
• The UX challenges unique to AI-driven interactions
• Practical strategies for designing intuitive, human-centered AI experiences

6:30 - 7:00: Forum discussion by Swarna Pandu and Rakshana Balakrishnan
"Redefining Product Building in the Age of AI"
Leading Through the Shift: What Skills Matter Now, Who Gets Hired, and What Happens to Juniors?

What does modern product development look like in an era defined by economic uncertainty, AI, and shrinking career ladders? Join Swarna Pandu and Rakshana Balakrishnan as they reflect on how creating products has evolved in recent years and discuss the realities of shipping in uncertain conditions, the pressures on product teams to do more with less, why hiring is fundamentally changing, and how mid-level and junior talent can adapt and grow in a market that’s no longer predictable. Whether you’re designing, coding, or driving product strategy, this session will help you understand how to stay relevant, resilient, and ready for the next shift.

7:00 - 7:30: Networking and close