Builder. Leader of builders.

AI-forward design executive. Founded CVS Health's AI Design Lab. Building with Cursor + Claude Code.

WHO

I'm an AI-forward design leader who has shipped production AI products, scaled AI-enabled design practices, and is still writing code with AI tools today. I've led design organizations from 5 to 400+ people across consumer fintech, healthcare, and enterprise SaaS. In 2015, before AI was a boardroom priority, I led the design of Schwab Intelligent Portfolios — an autonomous investing platform that grew to $70B in assets under management. At CVS Health, I founded the AI Design Lab, one of the first enterprise programs dedicated to embedding AI directly into the UX design process.

Most design leaders stopped making things years ago. I didn't. I prototype with Cursor and Claude Code. I run a personal knowledge system wired through MCP integrations. The title changed over 30 years; the obsession with getting it right never did.

My namesake, the architect Eliel Saarinen, said: "Always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context." It's as true now in agentic software as it was in his day for physical spaces — and it's the design instinct I bring to every product I touch.

WHAT

AI PRODUCT STRATEGY

I build AI-powered products, not just the teams that design them. From Schwab Intelligent Portfolios ($70B AUM) to CVS Health's AI Design Lab — I've shipped agentic experiences that make consequential decisions on behalf of users.

SCALING DESIGN ORGANIZATIONS

I build design teams and the cultures that make them exceptional. Grew Schwab UX from 5 to 250+. Led 400+ at CVS Health. Design, research, content, and accessibility — all wired for speed and craft.

DESIGN SYSTEMS AT SCALE

I build systems that compound. Schwab's Everest design system cut dev time by 35%. CVS Health's enterprise system delivered 9× designer efficiency and 20× faster developer delivery across pharmacy, insurance, and care.

BUILDING WITH AI TOOLS

I prototype with Cursor and Claude Code. The fidelity curve is collapsing — a designer with taste and AI tools can go from concept to functional software in a single session. I'm not theorizing about this future. I'm building in it.

CROSS-FUNCTIONAL LEADERSHIP

I operate as a peer to CTOs and CPOs, not a service function. I foster radical collaboration across product, engineering, and design — driven by the conviction that the best products come from high-agency teams with clear focus.

SPEAKING & WRITING

Config, Stanford D.School, Cornell Business School, the Federal Reserve, McKinsey Design Leaders Conference, AIGA, and Finnovate. I write and speak about the Delegation Layer, agentic UX, and what the collagists got right about AI before AI existed. I hold multiple design patents.

25+ years of building. Still building.

WHERE

Currently

Member, UserTesting Executive Advisory Board. Preparing "Designing for Delegation" talk for Crafted conference (May 2026). Building prototypes with Cursor and Claude Code. Writing about agentic UX and the Delegation Layer framework.

CVS Health — VP, Head of Design (2024–2026)

Led one of the largest design organizations in American healthcare — 400+ designers, researchers, and content strategists across CVS Pharmacy, Aetna, Caremark, and MinuteClinic. Founded the AI Design Lab, one of the first enterprise programs embedding AI into the UX design process. Shipped the unified CVS Health app for 60M+ members and redesigned the Aetna Health app to Apple's highest accessibility rating.

Charles Schwab — VP, Head of UX (2011–2023)

Built Schwab's UX practice from scratch. First VP of UX — grew the team from 5 to 250+. Led Schwab Intelligent Portfolios — an AI-driven robo-advisor that grew to $70B AUM. Integrated TD Ameritrade's design org after the largest brokerage acquisition in history. Built the Everest design system, reducing design and dev time by 35%. Launched Schwab's first iOS and Android apps.

Earlier

Co-founded Thread Experience, a UX design agency serving VMware, TIBCO, Sony, SAP, and Wells Fargo. Director of UX at Digitas UK (London) for Ford of Europe, British Telecom, and Barclaycard. UC Berkeley, Interdisciplinary Visual Studies.

WRITING

UX has an interaction problem — and it's not what you think

The atomic unit of UX is shifting from the interaction to the delegation. I identify three unsolved design problems of the agentic era — Presence, Legibility, and Orchestration — and propose the Delegation Layer as a framework for what comes next. Read more →

Illustration of a human hand initiating a cascade of particles that transform from physical to digital — representing the shift from direct interaction to delegated agency

CONNECT

I'm always interested in meeting builders and leaders who care about craft, agency, and making things that matter. I also take on a small number of advising engagements. Drop me a note.

eliel@elieljohnson.com or connect on LinkedIn or X