AI works when it works for people. We make sure it does.

Part design lab, part change studio. We work with you to design AI-driven products and services and guide AI adoption—so it actually works for your customers, your employees, and your organization.

HUMAN-CENTERED. DATA INFORMED. ETHICALLY GROUNDED.

THE “SMALL” PHILOSOPHY

Success in AI is Found in the Small Things

Big initiatives only move when we get the "small" things right—the human moments, the workflow nuances, and the data that powers it all. Our work focuses on the intersection of People, Data, and Change to ensure AI actually works and sticks.

We design for the humans involved. If they aren’t the focus, the AI doesn't land.

People

We understand the data foundations that make AI function and the metrics that prove it’s working.

Data

Tech alone doesn't transform anything. We guide the behavioral shift required to make AI part of the culture.

Change

WHAT WE DO

Designing smarter products. Guiding better work.

AI is changing what products and services can do and how organizations work. We help you find where it creates real value, and do the work to make it stick.

AI Strategy & Design

From opportunity to experience, we help you determine where AI fits into your product and design how it should work for the people.

FINDING WHERE AI CREATES REAL VALUE

We research your customers, your data, and your market to identify where AI can create meaningful value in your products and services. You walk away knowing which opportunities to pursue and why.

Capabilities: Deep Discovery, Opportunity Mapping

DESIGNING HOW AI BEHAVES

We work with you to design how AI behaves within your product: what role it plays, how it responds, and what happens when it's wrong. We prototype the experience so you can test it before you build it.

Capabilities: Behavior Design, Experience Prototyping, Model & Data Design

AI Adoption & Change

We help you get real, lasting value from AI by investing as much in the people and change as you do in the technology.

ASSESSING YOUR ORGANIZATION’S READINESS

We look at your processes, how AI fits your goals, and whether your culture is ready for real change. Before you invest, you get clarity on what's in place, what's not, and what to do next.

Capabilities: AI Readiness Assessment, Change Planning, Advisory & Hands-on Support

MAKING AI PART OF HOW TEAMS WORK

We work with you to find where AI could help, redesign the workflows around it, build fluency across your teams, and manage the change so it lasts. The result is work that’s better, not just different.

Capabilities: Opportunity Mapping, Workflow & Behavior Redesign, AI Enablement, Change Management & Facilitation

WHERE TO START

The place to start is different for everyone.

Do any of these sound familiar?

AI STRATEGY & DESIGN

  • Is this AI opportunity worth pursuing?

  • Where are our opportunities, and where should we focus first?

  • What should our AI product or service actually do and how should it work?

  • What's not working — and why?

AI ADOPTION & CHANGE

  • Where could AI actually fit in how we work?

  • Are we ready to move forward with AI?

  • Why isn't our AI adoption gaining traction?

  • What needs to change — and where do we start?

Here's how we work, depending on where you are and how deep you need to go.

Diagnostic: I have a specific question I need
answered quickly

Workshop: I have a problem or opportunity I need to work through

Sprint: I'm ready to go deep on one thing

Full Engagement: I need a partner for the whole journey

WHAT TO EXPECT

Thought partners, not one-size-fits-all.

"Curiosity over certainty" is how we approach every partnership. We hold our work to a few simple standards:

Seek Understanding: We listen before we advise, working alongside you to define the nuances of the problem before we solve it.

Measure What Matters: We ignore the noise and surface-level metrics to focus on the specific data that proves the work is actually functioning.

Build Capability: Our goal is to leave you stronger. We build your internal expertise, not your dependence on us.

AI ETHICS IN PRACTICE, NOT THEORY.

"Ethically grounded" is the promise behind our people-first approach. We ensure the outcome is productive, ethical, and beneficial by following these principles:

Prioritize Agency

We design systems that keep people in control and in the loop.

Demand Clarity

If a user can’t understand why an AI made a decision, the work isn't finished.

Focus on Utility

We don't build gimmicks. If it doesn't solve a real human need and serve the common good, we’ll tell you.

THE TEAM

Leadership for the human side of AI.

We started smalldesign.studio because we saw a gap: AI needs the human side to work.

We’re here to bridge it — with shared expertise in systems thinking, research, strategy, behavior design, human-centered AI, and organizational change. Working as a team to meet the moment:

Kevin Silver

goes deeper in data analytics, AI/ML, and product strategy.

Morgan St Laurent

goes deeper in service design, internal operations, and employee experience.

Ready to make AI work?

Whether you're building an AI-driven product or helping your organization adopt new tools, we’d like to hear what you’re working on.