company
Josh.ai
ROLE
Founding Designer
TIMELINE
2015 – 2022
PLATFORMS
Web, iOS, Android, Voice, TV remote, Touch capacitive surfaces
XFN TEAM
CEO CTO 30+ FTEs across Business Development, Engineering, and Design
01
SNAPSHOT
01
SNAPSHOT
01
SNAPSHOT
company
Josh.ai
ROLE
Founding Designer
TIMELINE
2015 – 2022
PLATFORMS
Web, iOS, Android, Voice, TV remote, Touch capacitive surfaces
XFN TEAM
CEO CTO 30+ FTEs across Business Development, Engineering, and Design
Agentic Home Automation
Building an AI home automation platform from the ground up to overtake Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Homekit in the luxury smart home market.
02
MEET JOSH
02
MEET JOSH
Josh.ai is the leading luxury home-automation brand, trusted by celebrities, athletes, and CEOs.
Josh.ai x Control4 integration. Video: Control4.
Josh.ai x Control4 integration. Video: Control4.
As founding designer, I built the brand and product line from zero and took it to product-market fit and segment leadership.
As founding designer, I built the brand and product line from zero and took it to product-market fit and segment leadership.
Challenges
No brand awareness, up against mainstream and luxury incumbents
Few integration APIs, and a team that had never built hardware
Voice control was nascent; earlier attempts fell short
So we built everything from scratch, starting with our own language engine
Key Achievements
Set the vision for the brand image and product roadmap
Designed the visual language and design system
Validated the luxury-market bet by auditing competitors' UX gaps
Designed for brand partners and staff as much as end users
Challenges
No brand awareness, up against mainstream and luxury incumbents
Few integration APIs, and a team that had never built hardware
Voice control was nascent; earlier attempts fell short
So we built everything from scratch, starting with our own language engine
Key Achievements
Set the vision for the brand image and product roadmap
Designed the visual language and design system
Validated the luxury-market bet by auditing competitors' UX gaps
Designed for brand partners and staff as much as end users
The Josh.ai product suite shipped during my tenure: iOS & Android apps, Josh Micro, Josh Nano, Josh Core.
The Josh.ai product suite shipped during my tenure: iOS & Android apps, Josh Micro, Josh Nano, Josh Core.
03
defining the brand
03
defining the brand
▸ strategic positioning
I spent the first few months studying the competitive landscape to find underserved segments. The segment we chose shaped our brand voice and every artifact after it.
▸ strategic positioning
I spent the first few months studying the competitive landscape to find underserved segments. The segment we chose shaped our brand voice and every artifact after it.
▸ strategic positioning
I spent the first few months studying the competitive landscape to find underserved segments. The segment we chose shaped our brand voice and every artifact after it.
consumer
DIYers & hobbyists
PROS
▸
Wide appeal, largest segment
▸
Many open source solutions to reference
CONS
▸
Graveyard of failed startups
▸
Judged against mainstream voice assistants
Prosumer
Audiophiles and home theater enthusiasts
PROS
▸
Proven business model (e.g., Magnolia, Best Buy)
▸
Tech savvy user base
CONS
▸
Hard to sell direct
▸
Limited growth potential
luxury
CHOSEN
Bespoke installations & custom programming
PROS
▸
Most ripe for innovation
▸
High margins on each project sale
CONS
▸
Smallest segment
▸
Few integrations; costliest to build
consumer
DIYers & hobbyists
PROS
▸
Wide appeal, largest segment
▸
Many open source solutions to reference
CONS
▸
Graveyard of failed startups
▸
Judged against mainstream voice assistants
Prosumer
Audiophiles and home theater enthusiasts
PROS
▸
Proven business model (e.g., Magnolia, Best Buy)
▸
Tech savvy user base
CONS
▸
Hard to sell direct
▸
Limited growth potential
luxury
CHOSEN
Bespoke installations & custom programming
PROS
▸
Most ripe for innovation
▸
High margins on each project sale
CONS
▸
Smallest segment
▸
Few integrations; costliest to build
why luxury
We chose luxury: the most underserved segment, with room to innovate and no immediate fight with mainstream brands over thin margins.
why luxury
We chose luxury: the most underserved segment, with room to innovate and no immediate fight with mainstream brands over thin margins.
I art directed the lifestyle and product photography for Josh Micro's launch. Photo: Nicholas Freeman.
I art directed the lifestyle and product photography for Josh Micro's launch. Photo: Nicholas Freeman.
▸ brand visuals
I created all brand and marketing visuals: identity, packaging, ads, social, trade shows, keynotes, and partner activations. I art directed most photo and video shoots.
source
According to the 2026 CE Pro 100 Brand Analysis, Josh.ai leads the market as the most installed voice control solution in luxury smart homes.
source
According to the 2026 CE Pro 100 Brand Analysis, Josh.ai leads the market as the most installed voice control solution in luxury smart homes.
04
JOSH MICRO
04
JOSH MICRO
Josh Micro, our first hardware product, is an architectural microphone with touch controls. I contributed to its form factor, CMF, and packaging, and owned its UX and interaction design.
▸ PATENTS
I hold two patents on Josh Micro, US D855,583 and US 10,345,773, covering its multi-modal interaction.
Video: customizing Micro's interactions in the app. Sound on 🔈
Video: customizing Micro's interactions in the app. Sound on 🔈
05
JOSH IOS APP
05
JOSH IOS APP
The Josh iOS app is the interface people use most and boasts comprehensive customization options.
The Josh iOS app is the interface people use most and boasts comprehensive customization options.
Video: natural language control in the app. Sound on 🔈
Video: natural language control in the app. Sound on 🔈
Rethinking smart home control
Mainstream apps were walled gardens: users had to juggle multiple apps for disparate controls
Luxury brands underinvested in digital control, leaving room to set the standard
Rethinking smart home control
Mainstream apps were walled gardens: users had to juggle multiple apps for disparate controls
Luxury brands underinvested in digital control, leaving room to set the standard
Designed around real luxury homes
Luxury homes have dozens to hundreds of addressable devices; other apps controlled one at a time
Josh shows what's relevant and zooms between whole home, room, and single device
Designed around real luxury homes
Luxury homes have dozens to hundreds of addressable devices; other apps controlled one at a time
Josh shows what's relevant and zooms between whole home, room, and single device
A virtual agent just for the home
Two modes to design: GUIs and logic trees for manual control, and voice-first conversation
People can talk or text in plain language, SMS-style
A virtual agent just for the home
Two modes to design: GUIs and logic trees for manual control, and voice-first conversation
People can talk or text in plain language, SMS-style
▸ deign detail
Device control scales from the whole home to a single device, which mainstream apps didn't handle well.
Video: creating a scene. Sound on 🔈
Video: creating a scene. Sound on 🔈
▸ deign detail
Granular control: guest permissions and advanced scenes with conditional logic and triggers.
05
JOSH HOME REMOTE
05
JOSH HOME REMOTE
Josh Home Remote: built for the whole home, not just the home theater. 3D: Brian Hulme.
Josh Home Remote: built for the whole home, not just the home theater. 3D: Brian Hulme.
I interviewed brand partners about what would help close more projects. A hardware remote ranked highest.
design requirement
I designed the remote's UX for full parity with the app, controlling the whole home, not just the theater.
I interviewed brand partners about what would help close more projects. A hardware remote ranked highest.
design requirement
I designed the remote's UX for full parity with the app, controlling the whole home, not just the theater.
▸ design process
I built a high-fidelity interactive prototype to test interest with focus groups before the company committed to hardware.
Software first, hardware next
A remote takes 18 to 24 months, so we shipped in-app home theater control first
That let us build every integration up front, so the hardware launched feature complete
It also proved demand for a physical remote
Software first, hardware next
A remote takes 18 to 24 months, so we shipped in-app home theater control first
That let us build every integration up front, so the hardware launched feature complete
It also proved demand for a physical remote
My prototype paired a touchscreen with tactile buttons; production split into three directions. All of them shipped.
My prototype paired a touchscreen with tactile buttons; production split into three directions. All of them shipped.
Screenless remote with hot-swappable, programmable buttons.
All-screen remote with full app parity.
Closest to the original vision; co-developed with AVA.
Screenless remote with hot-swappable, programmable buttons.
All-screen remote with full app parity.
Closest to the original vision; co-developed with AVA.
07
designing for our dealers
07
designing for our dealers
The dealer portal: certified integrators manage projects, place orders, and check brand status.
The dealer portal: certified integrators manage projects, place orders, and check brand status.
Homeowners weren't my only users. Dealers, the integrators who sell, install, and service Josh, were first-class users with their own needs.
Incentives, not features, unblocked dealer sales
Problem: sales plateaued; dealers said "we can't sell Josh without [brand] integration," which kept us chasing feature completeness
Insight: in my dealer interviews, I saw they took pride in brand status, like airline mileage tiers, and loved competing, displaying status on their sites and in showrooms
Action: I designed the Josh Dealer Incentive Program
Result: >80% of onboarded dealers cleared the Silver tier in the first year of selling Josh.ai
The gap was never features; it was incentives.
Incentives, not features, unblocked dealer sales
Problem: sales plateaued; dealers said "we can't sell Josh without [brand] integration," which kept us chasing feature completeness
Insight: in my dealer interviews, I saw they took pride in brand status, like airline mileage tiers, and loved competing, displaying status on their sites and in showrooms
Action: I designed the Josh Dealer Incentive Program
Result: >80% of onboarded dealers cleared the Silver tier in the first year of selling Josh.ai
The gap was never features; it was incentives.
08
IMPACT
08
IMPACT
As one of two designers on staff, I built a category-defining product from scratch that reached product-market fit and still leads its segment.
As one of two designers on staff, I built a category-defining product from scratch that reached product-market fit and still leads its segment.
For an in-depth 1:1 deep dive...
For an in-depth 1:1 deep dive...
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