Resume
5 Years Design Experience
Bobby Zhao
Product Designer
Criticalchat
Criticalchat
Centralize and personalize family caregiver resources to provide quick, accessible, and community-oriented support.
Centralize and personalize family caregiver resources to provide quick, accessible, and community-oriented support.
Responsibilities
Responsibilities
Design Research,User Interview, Ideation, UIUX
Design Research,
User Interview,
Ideation, UIUX
Design Research,
User Interview, Ideation, UIUX
Background
Most AI platforms function as single-turn input-output systems, providing responses based on direct prompts without facilitating iterative or divergent thinking. This limitation curtails the development of critical thinking skills by reinforcing surface-level understanding or confirmation bias
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Confirmation Bias
Mental Model Stagnation
Speed over Quality
Problem
Urgency
Cognitive Atrophy
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Studies highlight that many gen-AI users engage in cognitive offloading, an unconscious act of delegating cognitive tasks to external tools to reduce mental effort, due to intellectual complacency and product convenience.
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
In EEG testing, frequent gen-AI users also showed much lower neural engagement in memory and creativity regions. They also became increasingly less diligent and defaulted to "cut-and-paste" behavior.
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
On Critical
Thinking
What Define Critical Thinking?
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Studies highlight that many gen-AI users engage in cognitive offloading, an unconscious act of delegating cognitive tasks to external tools to reduce mental effort, due to intellectual complacency and convenience.
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Pascarella & Terenzini Measures
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Reasoning
Reasoning
Detecting misuse of deifintions
Detecting misuse of deifintions
Argument Analysis
Argument Analysis
Making strong arguments
Making strong arguments
Thinking as Hypothesis Testing
Thinking as Hypothesis Testing
Check for sample size when a generalization is made
Check for sample size when a generalization is made
Likelihood & Uncertainty Analysis
Likelihood & Uncertainty Analysis
Predict the probability of an event occurrence
Predict the probability of an event occurrence
Decision Making & Problem Solving
Decision Making & Problem Solving
Actively seeking analogies
Actively seeking analogies
Gerlich, Michael. 2025. "AI Tools in Society: Impacts on Cognitive Offloading and the Future of Critical Thinking" Societies 15, no. 1: 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc15010006
the Delphi Report
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Interpretation
Interpretation
Understanding experiences/data/rules
Understanding experiences/data/rules
Analysis
Analysis
Identify inferential relationships among concepts
Identify inferential relationships among concepts
Evaluation
Evaluation
Assessing statement/representation credibility
Assessing statement/representation credibility
Inference
Inference
Acquire additional elements needed to draw conclusions
Acquire additional elements needed to draw conclusions
Self-Regulation
Self-Regulation
Self-consciously monitoring one's cognitive activities and results deduced
Self-consciously monitoring one's cognitive activities and results deduced
Facione, Peter. (1989). Critical Thinking: A Statement of Expert Consensus for Purposes of Educational Assessment and Instruction. Research Findings and Recommendations. 315.
What limits cognitive stimulation in current gen-AI interactions?
What limits cognitive stimulation in current gen-AI interactions?
Research
Method
Research
Method
Prior to in-depth one-on-one interviews, we designed a detailed survey questionnaire to provide us with preliminary understanding of the family caregiver profile. We refined our interview guide based on the findings in this survey.
User
Behaviors
User
Behaviors
Selective Bias
For
The current interaction is dominated by
Interviews Insights
Interviews Insights
Pain Point
Definition
Pain Point
Definition
Based on research findings, we narrowed down the biggest pain point to trouble finding and retaining relevant caregiving information and resources in the early stage of caregiving (first 12 months).
The consequences are detrimental:
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Wasted Time
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Frequent Burnout
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Preventable Harms
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Emotional Isolation
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
User
Segmentation
User
Segmentation
To address the multifaceted factors that attribute to caregiving burnouts, we mapped out pain points based on three contexts: stage of aging, caregiver perspective and elder perspective.
We have identified first time caregiver (0-12 months) with elders who are in advanced stage of cognitive and physical decline to be our target users, who currently experience the most pain points while underserved by existing service infrastructures.
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
Personas
The WHO reports 4.5 billion people lack access to essential health services.
How can AI-copilot become a part of the human critical thinking instead of a mere external static suggestion/output tool
How can AI-copilot become a part of the human critical thinking instead of a mere external static suggestion/output tool
Features
Definition
01
01
Assumption Callouts
Assumption Callouts
03
03
Context Elaboration
Context Elaboration
02
02
Counter Arguments
Counter Arguments
Ideation
Product Goals
We began product conceptualization with the brainstorming and affinity mapping of product feasibility and desirability goals.
Scarlet Skies - BBC Rebound - BBCPie
Storyboard
Extension
Engagement
Enticement
User sees WeCare poster at key clinic waiting room and is handed WeCare journal
User scans QR code to download app or visits website
User enters information to set up profile
User browses through personalized caregiving guideline and community knowledge shares based on matching algorithm
User experiences frustration in a specific caregiving task
Visitor hunts for key phrases on WeCare, eyeing possible remedies
User browses through solutions/strategies posted by other family/professional caregivers (personalized knowledge transfer)
User tries out and fine tunes different solutions.
User documents each solution experience and strategy variance based on the modification
User’s modified solution is added to the online repertoire as a solution variation
The Journal Packet
The Journal Packet
Offers a high-level overview of caregiving, equipping them with guiding and reflective questions around 5 key areas:
Finding Care
Financing Care
Coordinating care
Planning Ahead
Caring for Yourself
The Digital Twin
The Digital Twin
Exploration
Journal to Digital
Exploration
Journal to Digital
Navigation
Problem-specific
Resources
Navigation
Problem-specific
Resources
Execution
App to Journal
Execution
App to Journal
Engagement
Social Connection
Engagement
Social Connection
In-depth
information hub
In-depth
information hub
Personalized
Results
Personalized
Results
Applicable
Materials
Applicable
Materials
Dynamic
Community
Dynamic
Community
Product
Planning
Product
Planning
Product Planning
Core Features
Searchable Knowledge Base
Function: Allows caregivers to input questions and browse categories.
Components:
Smart search bar (natural language queries)
Categorized resource hub (FAQs, common scenarios)
Resource Recommendation Engine
Function: Matches users with vetted care resources based on eligibility and needs.
Components:
Onboarding form
Resource matching algorithm
Community Knowledge Share
Function: Let caregivers post questions and journal experiences that others can engage with.
Components:
Community feed with search, tags, and likes
“Care Journal” for story logging
Caregiving Roadmap
Function: Visual step-by-step guide of a personalized caregiving journey.
Components:
"To-do list" task recommendation
Progress tracker
Core Features
Searchable Knowledge Base
Function: Allows caregivers to input questions and browse categories.
Components:
Smart search bar (natural language queries)
Categorized resource hub (FAQs, common scenarios)
Resource Recommendation Engine
Function: Matches users with vetted care resources based on eligibility and needs.
Components:
Onboarding form
Resource matching algorithm
Community Knowledge Share
Function: Let caregivers post questions and journal experiences that others can engage with.
Components:
Community feed with search, tags, and likes
“Care Journal” for story logging
Caregiving Roadmap
Function: Visual step-by-step guide of a personalized caregiving journey.
Components:
"To-do list" task recommendation
Progress tracker
Sketches Feedback
The initial wireframe responses indicate that users prefer ease of information navigation and light cognitive load
Too much text on home page dashboard can be overwhelming
Too much text on home page dashboard can be overwhelming
It is helpful to see "similar solutions" on community posts
It is helpful to see "similar solutions" on community posts
All care resources and posts seem text heavy
All care resources and posts seem text heavy
Unclear how the app is connected to the journal packet
Unclear how the app is connected to the journal packet
Mid-Fi
Wireframe
Mid-Fi
Wireframe
Final
Design
Final
Design
Exploration
Journal to App
Wecare journal’s digital twin provides a bridge to additional in-depth caregiving resources all in one place
Wecare journal’s digital twin provides a bridge to additional in-depth caregiving resources all in one place
Navigation
Personalized Directory
Personalized curation of caregiving suggestions and resources based on user profile
Personalized curation of caregiving suggestions and resources based on user profile
Problem-specific solutions explored by fellow caregiving users
Problem-specific solutions explored by fellow caregiving users
Action
App to Journal
Top community inputs are featured in the next version of wecare journal, validating users’ contribution
Top community inputs are featured in the next version of wecare journal, validating users’ contribution
Applying community validated materials and practice to users’ own caregiving workflow
Applying community validated materials and practice to users’ own caregiving workflow
Engagement
Community Connection
Gamification encourages user participation and recognizes caregivers’ value
Gamification encourages user participation and recognizes caregivers’ value
Community-centric engagement promotes connections and minimizes social isolation
Community-centric engagement promotes connections and minimizes social isolation
