Case Study
Designing AI for professional art collectors
Accruing over $20m in nine days as lead product designer
Summary
🎨 Transforming AI from novelty into a serious vehicle for investment
💰 Seamless fiat and crypto checkout for both digital and physical ownership
🔍 Designing accessible, intuitive UX that feels invisible
🧠 Balancing brand legacy with technological innovation
💰 Seamless fiat and crypto checkout for both digital and physical ownership
🔍 Designing accessible, intuitive UX that feels invisible
🧠 Balancing brand legacy with technological innovation
Overview
As lead product designer, I was tasked with creating HENI's first AI-powered investment platform - a product that had to work for traditional art collectors and first-time investors while embracing cutting-edge technology.
Challenge
Can AI bring people closer to the creators they admire, or does it just add another layer of distance?
I had to explore this while navigating some tricky constraints:
• HENI's collectors expect elite quality experiences, not tech demos
• The AI models were sophisticated but needed translation into human terms
• Users needed to understand what they were actually buying - and why it had value
• The AI models were sophisticated but needed translation into human terms
• Users needed to understand what they were actually buying - and why it had value
My goal: Make the tech invisible and let the investment opportunity take center stage.
Features
This project had multiple deliverables and required a lot of end-to-end ownership. I crafted features by closely collaborating with data science and development teams.
Engage with the algorithm
The algorithm is stored on-chain and utilises Perlin noise, trigonometry and WEBGL shaders. Every artwork is unique.
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Generate new unique titles
Created by a transformer neural network and trained on data from a dependency parser.
Watch a live feed
Generated artworks are showcased, live for all to see.
Pay with fiat or crypto
We accept US dollar or Ethereum.
Choose materials
Physical or digital artworks are available, upscaled to 16K.
Invest in a unique opportunity
At HENI we developed proprietary AI algorithms through close collaboration with world-renowned artists, and uncovered patterns and creative principles that pushed boundaries.
The value lies in using tech not just as a tool, but as a collaborator to craft culturally significant, forward-thinking opportunities.
The value lies in using tech not just as a tool, but as a collaborator to craft culturally significant, forward-thinking opportunities.
What I built
The core experience: A platform where collectors can co-create and browse artworks created with the AI collaborator, understand their provenance and rarity, explore the artist-modelled algorithm, then purchase both physical signed artworks and digital ownership rights to each unique piece in one transaction that accepts both US dollar and crypto.
Key features I designed:
• Interactive creation process - Users collaborate with AI models trained on specific artists to generate unique pieces, making them co-creators rather than passive buyers.
• Dual-ownership checkout - Single transaction flow that seamlessly bundles physical signed artwork with digital ownership rights. No confusing "NFT" language - just clear ownership of both formats.
• Rarity and provenance system - Designed filtering and visualization tools that help collectors understand what makes each piece valuable and unique, focusing on artistic merit over algorithm complexity.
• Collector engagement features - Recognising that serious art collectors expect curation, context, and continuing engagement rather than simple transactions, I designed a live creation feed to foster ongoing connection, and an additional AR app to reduce purchase hesitation by letting collectors preview works in their actual spaces.
Key features I designed:
• Interactive creation process - Users collaborate with AI models trained on specific artists to generate unique pieces, making them co-creators rather than passive buyers.
• Dual-ownership checkout - Single transaction flow that seamlessly bundles physical signed artwork with digital ownership rights. No confusing "NFT" language - just clear ownership of both formats.
• Rarity and provenance system - Designed filtering and visualization tools that help collectors understand what makes each piece valuable and unique, focusing on artistic merit over algorithm complexity.
• Collector engagement features - Recognising that serious art collectors expect curation, context, and continuing engagement rather than simple transactions, I designed a live creation feed to foster ongoing connection, and an additional AR app to reduce purchase hesitation by letting collectors preview works in their actual spaces.
Art world minimalism with the power of AI, created in close collaboration with Damien Hirst
UX guardrails for users with crypto wallets
Intuitive components with art world simplicity
Designing a live feed for large screens and in-situ displays within galleries
Designing an interstitial state to encourage Digital NFT acquisition but not over-emphasise it
Journey mapping for purchase flows involving fiat and crypto purchase journeys
The response
The outcome
$20m+
Revenue in first 9 days
60m+
Interactions in first 9 days
Shaping the future
This platform established key design principles for how AI tools should integrate with human creativity - prioritizing collaboration over replacement, authenticity over novelty, and meaningful interaction over algorithmic output. By proving that sophisticated users will embrace AI when it enhances rather than diminishes human artistry, this work provides a blueprint for how emerging technologies can be thoughtfully introduced across creative industries. The success suggests a future where AI becomes an invisible creative partner, valued not for its computational power but for its ability to unlock new forms of human expression.
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