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Amber Sawaya smiling outdoors in front of a flowering hedge, wearing a wide-brim black hat and a black-and-white patterned blazer.

About Me

Amber Sawaya, Human Experience Designer and Design Leader

I am a passionate human experience designer (HXD) who works with technical founders to bring products to life. I’ve been working in the intersection of user experience (UX) and artificial intelligence (AI) for many years, first in convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and now Large Language Models (LLMs). I am currently the Head of Design at Osmos.io. I also know acronyms like ASAP and SNAFU, and the one I’m best at is ROI. 

I believe that HXD should be intuitive, efficient, and delightful, and needs to consider the whole human, beyond the slim persona of a user. I diligently fight against dark patterns, bring accessibility into everything I do, and understand that well-designed experiences drive business impact—and I have the measurable results to prove it. 

Before my current role, I was the principal partner at a UX agency, the EVP of UX and Product at an AI startup, and a UX consultant before that. In my early career, I did graphic design, web design, and some web development for clients in fintech, media & entertainment, public works, and mineral exploration. 

In addition to my UX portfolio, I’ve been a working creative for more than two decades. Some of my favorite non-UX projects include branding Millcreek Common, creating the new Tucker penguin mascot for Procare, and a Data Science Magic 8 Ball for MarketDial. 

I write and speak on a range of HXD and design topics, from creative careers to design operations to accessibility. 

Work History

  • Osmos – Head of Design, Seattle, WA – 2024–Present  
  • Anchor & Alpine – Principal Partner, Salt Lake City, UT – 2020–2024  
  • Zorroa / BoonAI – EVP of UX & Product, San Francisco, CA – 2016–2019  
  • Limnu – UX Lead, Salt Lake City, UT – Acquired by Zipsocket in 2018  
  • JOUST / Technicolor – UX Lead, Los Angeles, CA – Acquired by Technicolor in 2016  
  • Sawaya Consulting – Agency Partner, Salt Lake City, UT – 2006–2016  
  • Galileo Financial Technologies – Creative Director, Salt Lake City, UT – 2006–2009  
  • AIGA Salt Lake City – Sponsorship Chair – 2004–2005  
  • Cogbox – Designer, Front-end Dev, Salt Lake City, UT – 2004–2006  
  • WCF Insurance – Creative Director, Salt Lake City, UT – 2002–2004  
  • modern8 – Design Intern, Salt Lake City, UT – 2001  
  • University of Utah Health Services – Designer, Salt Lake City, UT – 2000–2002  

Awards, Patents, and Speaking Engagements

Awards

  • AIGA 100 Show CyberQP Branding 2023
  • AIGA 100 Show Boardable Website 2022
  • Utah Business 40 Under 40 2019
  • Amazon #1 Bestseller Building a Mobile App 2015
  • AIGA 100 Show Red Queen Book Arts Branding
  • AIGA 100 Show Signs of Capitalism
  • AIGA 100 Show Design Pulp
  • Silver Addy The Life Cogbox Illustration
  • Silver Addy Yule Injected Illustration
  • Silver Addy Cogbox Promo Poster
  • Salt Lake County Fair 1st Place High Blue Best of Show
  • Utah State Fair 1st Place High Blue Best of Show
  • Galileo Financial Employee of the Year
  • IMCA Best of Show WCF Holiday Posters

Patents

  • US Provisional Electronic Health Education Platform Shoreline Health 2023
  • US D886846S1 Wall-mounted UI for shooting ranges, Action Target 2017
  • US Provisional Functional Training Mat with Paul Holbrook 2014

Patents Overseen at Zorroa

  • US10467257B2 Hierarchical search folders 2019
  • US10311112B2 Linearized search of visual media 2019
  • US10769503B1 Digital organization of printed documents 2020
  • US20200285666A1 Media search using partial schemas 2020
  • US20190294629A1 Image cataloging system 2019

Speaking Engagements

  • Ladies That UX SLC Career Pathways 2023
  • SLC SEM UX and AI 2018
  • SLC Graphic Designers Meetup: How Amber Sawaya Does UX and Gets Paid 2018
  • The New Ice Cream Social: Social Media Talk 2012

Education

  • University of Utah – Bachelor of Fine Arts with an Emphasis in Graphic Design
  • ACE Certified Group Fitness Instructor

Volunteer Organizations

  • American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) – Member, Sponsorship chair, annual portfolio reviewer
  • Row4ALS.org – Fundraising and Utah/Atlantic and Utah/Pacific team management 
  • Utah Pride Center – Fundraising, graphic design 
Amber Sawaya, wearing a hat and floral shirt, reviews a design portfolio with two emerging designers at the 2023 AIGA Portfolio Review. The room is filled with other mentor-mentee pairs, and the table in front holds bananas and design tokens.
AIGA Portfolio Review, circa 2023 — Amber Sawaya (in the hat) mentoring emerging designers during a one-on-one feedback session.

Contact