Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
My guests in this episode are Josh Clark and Veronika Kindred, co-authors of the book, Sentient Design: Crafting Intelligent Interfaces with AI (rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design/) , published by Rosenfeld Media.
Our conversation ranged across the history of interaction design (Zork, MUDs, branching narratives), Josh and Veronika's "four postures" of AI systems (tools, chat, agents, co-pilots), the dangers of leaning too hard on physical metaphors, the idea of "casual intelligence" as a counter to AI maximalism, and the responsibilities designers have right now to shape how this technology gets implemented before money and Big Tech make all the decisions for us.
Listeners can use the code SENTIENTPOT for 20% off the book at at (rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design/) rosenfeldmedia.com (http://rosenfeldmedia.com) from June 9th to July 9th.
Josh Clark (linkedin.com/in/joshclark/) is principal of Big Medium (bigmedium.com/) , a digital agency that helps complex organizations design for what’s next. Josh has over 30 years of experience in emerging technology, user experience, and design innovation. His projects include future-friendly interfaces for AI, connected devices, and websites for many of the world’s biggest companies.
Veronika Kindred (linkedin.com/in/vkind/) is designer and researcher at Big Medium, where she defines and solves design problems alongside some of the world’s biggest companies. She travels internationally to lead Sentient Design workshops and speak to teams at startups and Fortune 100 companies alike. Her research has ranged from AI’s effect on user experience to mobile technology’s impact on African political engagement to the nuances of congressional climate hearings.
Show Links
Josh & Veronika
• Josh on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joshclark
• Veronika on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/vkind
• Sentient Design at Rosenfeld Media: rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design
• Big Medium: bigmedium.com (bigmedium.com/)
Andy
• Website: polaine.com (polaine.com/)
• Newsletter: pln.me/nws
• Podcast: pln.me/p10
• Design Leadership Coaching: polaine.com/coaching
• Courses: courses.polaine.com (courses.polaine.com/)
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/apolaine
• Bluesky: https://andypolaine.bsky.social (https://andypolaine.bsky.social/)
• YouTube: youtube.com/@apolaine
My guests in this episode are Josh Clark and Veronika Kindred, co-authors of the book, Sentient Design: Crafting Intelligent Interfaces with AI (rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design/) , published by Rosenfeld Media.
Our conversation ranged across the history of interaction design (Zork, MUDs, branching narratives), Josh and Veronika's "four postures" of AI systems (tools, chat, agents, co-pilots), the dangers of leaning too hard on physical metaphors, the idea of "casual intelligence" as a counter to AI maximalism, and the responsibilities designers have right now to shape how this technology gets implemented before money and Big Tech make all the decisions for us.
Listeners can use the code SENTIENTPOT for 20% off the book at at (rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design/) rosenfeldmedia.com (http://rosenfeldmedia.com) from June 9th to July 9th.
Josh Clark (linkedin.com/in/joshclark/) is principal of Big Medium (bigmedium.com/) , a digital agency that helps complex organizations design for what’s next. Josh has over 30 years of experience in emerging technology, user experience, and design innovation. His projects include future-friendly interfaces for AI, connected devices, and websites for many of the world’s biggest companies.
Veronika Kindred (linkedin.com/in/vkind/) is designer and researcher at Big Medium, where she defines and solves design problems alongside some of the world’s biggest companies. She travels internationally to lead Sentient Design workshops and speak to teams at startups and Fortune 100 companies alike. Her research has ranged from AI’s effect on user experience to mobile technology’s impact on African political engagement to the nuances of congressional climate hearings.
Show Links
Josh & Veronika
• Josh on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joshclark
• Veronika on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/vkind
• Sentient Design at Rosenfeld Media: rosenfeldmedia.com/books/sentient-design
• Big Medium: bigmedium.com (bigmedium.com/)
Andy
• Website: polaine.com (polaine.com/)
• Newsletter: pln.me/nws
• Podcast: pln.me/p10
• Design Leadership Coaching: polaine.com/coaching
• Courses: courses.polaine.com (courses.polaine.com/)
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/apolaine
• Bluesky: https://andypolaine.bsky.social (https://andypolaine.bsky.social/)
• YouTube: youtube.com/@apolaine
