Cynthia Cui
Design engineer working across product design and frontend engineering — taking products from first question to finished interface, and protecting the details that make software feel human.
NowLeading design engineering at Bootstrap, taking 0 → 1 products from ambiguity to launch.
Selected work
4 case studies
The Past, Present and Future of Braided SolidaritiesA national conference identity spanning web, print, and physical space — led with care for two cultures without flattening either.Read the case study
BunpoA product audit of a Japanese-learning app I have used for years, with a set of new features read closely and redrawn.Read the case study
Reframing The Water We Call HomeA research-creation thesis on decolonial museum practice, built through an exhibition scrapbook and a digital counter-tour of overlooked histories at the Gulf of Georgia Cannery.Read the case study
More work
Notes
July 2026Product limits are design decisionsWhy the best thing I did for a growing 3D graph was decide what it should refuse to show.3 minSeptember 2025Designing without flatteningWhat changed when a conference identity needed to hold two cultures as more than a visual mixture.4 minMay 2025Interfaces should explain their workA quiet status update can do more for trust than another layer of visual polish.3 min
Experience
Lead Design EngineerA design team of one, taking products from 0 → 1.
Product DesignerFreelance product and website design — quiet, intentional interfaces for creatives.
Founding DesignerBuilt the visual identity from 0 → 1 and led design for the inaugural conference.
Contact
Say hello about design, books, film, music, or something entirely different.