What should UX professionals do when the ground is shifting beneath them?
The economic landscape is shifting rapidly, and UX practitioners are feeling the impact. With AI transforming industries, shrinking budgets, and mounting pressure to prove the value of design, many UXers are grappling with a crisis of purpose. Teams are expected to do more with less, while individuals face burnout and uncertainty about their career trajectories. These challenges have persisted because the broader economic forces driving them are complex and ever-changing, leaving designers without clear strategies to adapt.
At UX Brighton 2025, we bring clarity to the chaos. Join us to learn from some of the world’s top thinkers and doers in UX and beyond. Together, we’ll unpack the big picture, exploring how economic shifts affect your work and what principles you can apply to thrive. Through a series of insightful talks, you’ll gain actionable strategies to boost your efficiency, elevate your career, and expand your skillset to stay competitive. Plus, you’ll connect with like-minded peers, share experiences, and forge new friendships that will support your journey long after the conference ends.
Take charge of your future. Get your ticket today and save with our Early Bird offer. Your next career breakthrough starts here.
Want to speak at UX Brighton? We’d love to hear your ideas – let’s have a quick chat to explore them.
Some of the smartest, most insightful and entertaining people I've met. And that was just the audience. The speakers were great, too.
Mike Kuniavsky, Xerox PARC
Information for Attendees
The conference is being held in the beautiful and historic Brighton Dome Concert Hall: just 10 minutes from Brighton Station, 3 minutes from the Lanes, 5 minutes from the beach and a whole heap of great restaurants and hotels. Registration starts from 9am with the first speaker on at 10am, we’ll email you to let you know when the talk times are finalised.
Before the conference why not join the UX Brighton Slack and get chatting with other UXers. We’ve also got a rather nice #jobs channel.
See our Attendee information guide for everything you need to get the most out of your visit to UX Brighton, including:
- Travel
- Accommodation
- Pre-conference meet-ups
- Accessibility
- Wifi and charging
- Cloakrooms
- Registration
- Refreshments
- After Party
Nobody Knows What They're Doing (and That’s to Your Advantage) – Zach Rattner
In the midst of the AI revolution, one truth stands out: no one has this all figured out. Not the biggest tech companies, not the hottest startups, not even the people training the models themselves. And that’s exactly where your opportunity lies.
In this keynote, Zach shares how best-in-class AI teams are succeeding not by having all the answers, but by moving fast, iterating honestly, and designing for what’s barely possible.
You’ll hear real examples from AI-driven product development, including automating back-office workflows, scaling human impact, and rethinking what teams are capable of when tedium is no longer the bottleneck.
This talk is a call to action for designers, technologists, and product leaders: you don’t need certainty to lead. You need curiosity, momentum, and a willingness to act before the roadmap is clear. In a time where the ground is shifting under everyone’s feet, your ability to move with purpose through ambiguity is what sets you apart.
About Zach
Zach is the CTO & Co-Founder of Yembo, author of Grow Up Fast: Lessons from an AI Startup, and an international keynote speaker.
He’s a software engineer with over 15 years of experience. He has a B.S. in Computer Engineering from Virginia Tech. His company is the leader in AI-powered virtual surveys with over 5 million videos inspected and customers in over 20 countries.
Zach’s previous projects include building a flashcard studying tool that scaled to over a million users and serving as the software lead for Qualcomm’s internal innovation program, Qualcomm ImpaQt.
He’s a Top A.I. contributor on LinkedIn, in the top 2% of contributors on Stack Overflow and has been granted 25 US patents with several more pending.
He has three children and lives in California with his wife Lindsay.
Should Designers (Vibe) Code? How to Become the Polymath Designer for the A.I. Age – Kelly Dern
This talk discusses how ‘vibe-coding’ is the future for becoming a well-rounded designer in the age of A.I.
Designers can use creative coding and AI not for full-stack perfection, but for rapid prototyping, aesthetic intuition, and exploring the limits of your design ideas. Rather than being T-shaped, designers can now be polymaths–specialisits in several areas.
Learn how embracing a developer mindset and using AI as a creative partner can help you:
- Elevate your prototypes with nuanced, interactive, and custom-coded components.
- Future-proof your skillset by becoming a polymath with multiple valuable skillsets for your team.
- Use AI to write code for everything from custom UI elements to your own Figma and browser plugins.
- Reduce product churn by testing and communicating complex interaction ideas more effectively with your team.
About Kelly
As a Senior Product Designer at Google, Kelly leads UX for a video AI team, which includes Google Meet, Duo, and Livestreaming for Workspace.
She has worked with Google Nest, start-ups, and Adidas on various product and UX projects, ranging from hardware-software integration to health tech solutions.
Kelly also enjoys learning new skills and sharing her knowledge as a speaker, mentor, and advisor in the design community.
Answers from the Arts and Crafts movement in this A.I. revolution – Sharon Webster
The industrial revolution didn’t just evolve ways of working, it triggered great social and economic change. In response to this rise of mass-production, many sought human-centred, ethical craftsmanship - leading to the Arts and Crafts movement.
As we enter another technological turning point with the rapid rise of AI, it’s the perfect moment to reflect on what history can teach us. In this talk, Sharon will draw on the parallels between these two revolutions, and asks what answers can we find from the Arts and Crafts movement to help us navigate the creative and ethical challenges of our present?
About Sharon
Sharon’s journey into UX began with a simple favour: taking notes during a usability study. That moment sparked a lasting passion for user research and for making it accessible, inclusive, and ethical.
With experience both agency-side and in-house, Sharon has worked across a wide range of industries. She brings a fresh, strategic perspective to business challenges through user research, and is driven by curiosity, continuous learning, as well as a strong commitment to doing what’s right by users.
As we move deeper into the AI era, Sharon’s mission is to uphold ethical research practices and empower others to do the same. She thrives on mentoring and leadership, helping individuals and teams grow their UX confidence and careers.
Talk topic TBA – James Lang
About James
James is a researcher by background, but wears several hats: strategist, product manager, community designer & coach. He was UX Research Director at YouTube/Google, Product Manager at eBay, and Head of Research at cxpartners.
James is founder of Together By Design, a volunteer action research collective with a mission: help people around the world to create & nurture healthy communities, using the tools of experience design. He also consults as a fractional UX Director.
Take a look at the Hopeful Futures for UX Research article for a first glimpse into his talk.
Reflection to Action – finding your way forward – Laura Dalrymple
How do you take that crucial first step toward a new chapter in your career?
Often, the clues we need to move forward are already within us – subtle breadcrumbs left behind in our past experiences and decisions. The challenge is recognising and following them.
In this talk, Laura reveals how reflection can be your most powerful tool to unlock clarity and purpose. By learning to pause, observe, and interpret your own actions, you can uncover hidden signals that guide your path forward.
Make the transformative journey from introspection to inspired action. Discover how to harness reflection to define your unique approach to change, craft meaningful goals, and take confident steps toward a career that truly resonates with who you are.
When we step beyond uncertainty, we can turn reflection into action and better shape the futures we want.
About Laura
Laura is a Lead User Researcher at NTT Data/Tangity specialising in Government clients. Prior to this she supported large scale transformation projects at the Bank of England as their first permanent senior user researcher; winning a central Banking award in 2025 for the UCD work she and her team carried out . Laura has also worked consultancy side with SPARCK/CGI delivering NHS digital COVID initiatives
Laura has a background in Psychology and Mental Health Nursing. Her experience covers research in variety of areas such as: biotech, psychoeducation (teaching mental health management), pharmaceuticals, complex data sets and financial regulation.
In her diverse 11 year career, Laura has amassed a rich toolbox, combining techniques from user research, psychology, design thinking and clinical research. Her passion is truly getting ‘under the skin’ of peoples experiences to realise real sustainable change. As a continuation of this, she has become an EMCC accredited coach, providing support to those wanting to change careers, go for promotion or reintegrate back into the working environment after time away.
What economics teaches UXers about shaping impactful real-world experiences – Avinash Mair
What happens when economics and UX collide - who truly benefits, and what hidden forces shape the products and services we use every day?
Avinash will delve into this intersection, inviting attendees to reconsider the influence of perception, value, and decision-making in designing for real-world impact.
In this talk, Avinash will challenge attendees to expand their perspective beyond traditional UX strategy, exploring how the wider economic system shapes our design choices and responsibilities.
Join this session to discover a fresh perspective on how UX and economics are actually two sides of the same coin, helping us to shape meaningful and lasting change in an evolving world.
About Avinash
Avinash is Lead UX Designer at the Natural History Museum. He has an unconventional background, studying Actuarial Science (the economics of risk) at university, first working as a business analyst and in business development. Discovering his love for designing meaningful and well-researched products, he moved internally to build a user research team and consulted for fintechs before taking the UX helm at the Natural History Museum.
Along the way, he’s picked up many lessons at the intersection of UX and business, the blind spots of both and the firm belief that whilst technology and methods will change, UX is still about creatively solving problems by understanding the complete system and finding under-leveraged opportunities to make the world a better place, just like economics.
Design Teams in the A.I. Era: A Practical Playbook for Adaptation – Oleksii Tkachenko
Some designers see A.I. as threatening their jobs, others feel it extends their capabilities.
In this talk Oleksii explores these two realities and how we might align our roles, craft, and day-to-day life at work accordingly.
Through real examples and a practical playbook, you’ll learn how to recognise which world you’re in, adapt your approach, and keep your judgment intact as the economics of design continue to change.
About Oleksii
Oleksii is a Senior Content Designer at TravelPerk, currently based in London. With 8+ years of expertise in Content and UX, he champions scalable content strategies to help products communicate with clarity and consistency.
Beyond his role at TravelPerk, he’s teaching Content Design and provides mentorship for aspiring tech professionals. Outside of work, he finds inspiration in street photography and enjoys creating zines, photo books, and limited-run prints.
Talk title TBA – Aadam Sümer
About Aadam
Aadam Sümer is an investor, entrepreneur, and Co-Founder of the London Venture Capital Network (LVCN), Europe’s fastest-growing community of venture capital investors, family offices, LPs and start-ups.
At the helm of landmark gatherings such as the London VC Summit and London VC Week, he brings together global investors, founders, and policymakers to shape the future of technology and finance.
Under his leadership, LVCN has partnered with more than 40 leading VC firms representing over USD 26 billion in AUM. Aadam is driven by a mission to make venture capital more accessible, diverse, and impactful, powering innovation that tackles society’s greatest challenges.
After Party
Join us for after conference drinks in the Foyer Bar (at the venue) until 8pm. You will receive a drinks voucher at registration. Your voucher is valid for a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.
Please keep your name badge with you if you want to leave and come back again.
Highlights from previous years
Sponsor UX Brighton
UX Brighton attracts an engaged crowd of designers, decision makers and influencers. If you’re interested in supporting UX Brighton have a look at the sponsorship information page for more details.
Fantastic conference - a fresh mix of new ideas, provocative speakers, and a highly engaged audience. Well worth the trip.
Alex Wright, Director of User Experience at the New York Times
Partners
UX Brighton is proud to be partnering with the following organisations
