DISCOVER PROJECT

DISCOVER PROJECT

Gifted Savings

AI Fintech Investing & Literacy

Design for Underserved Seniors
Gifted Savings is a nonprofit fintech program that gives underserved high school seniors a real $1,000 investment portfolio and teaches investing through a simple, bite-sized learning app.
I stepped in as Interim Head of Design for 8 months, led a full UX and UI overhaul, ran qualitative research, improved accessibility, and built an AI strategy to make learning clearer and more personal.

key
responsibilities

AI Strategy / UX Strategy / UX Audit / Research / UX Design / UI Design / Design System

Project Overview

Gifted Savings is an AI fintech investing and literacy platform that gives underserved high school seniors a real $1,000 investment portfolio paired with bite-sized education. The project refreshed the product end to end, using UX best practices and qualitative research to simplify onboarding, clarify portfolio insights, improve lesson completion, and add safe, optional AI guidance.

Vertical Focus
Vertical Focus
Vertical Focus
AI fintech nonprofit that blends investment gifting with financial education for underserved high school seniors.
AI fintech nonprofit that blends investment gifting with financial education for underserved high school seniors.
AI fintech nonprofit that blends investment gifting with financial education for underserved high school seniors.
Core Capability
Core Capability
Core Capability
A student app that pairs a real $1,000 investment portfolio with bite-sized lessons, progress tracking, and teacher-supported coaching.
A student app that pairs a real $1,000 investment portfolio with bite-sized lessons, progress tracking, and teacher-supported coaching.
A student app that pairs a real $1,000 investment portfolio with bite-sized lessons, progress tracking, and teacher-supported coaching.
Outcomes
Outcomes
Outcomes
Clearer onboarding and learning flows, improved lesson completion and comprehension, stronger student confidence signals, and faster design-to-dev handoffs through standardized components and tighter UX documentation.
Clearer onboarding and learning flows, improved lesson completion and comprehension, stronger student confidence signals, and faster design-to-dev handoffs through standardized components and tighter UX documentation.
Clearer onboarding and learning flows, improved lesson completion and comprehension, stronger student confidence signals, and faster design-to-dev handoffs through standardized components and tighter UX documentation.

Challenge / Solution

Challenge
Challenge
Challenge
The core challenge for Gifted Savings was to turn a complex AI fintech model, gifting real investment assets and teaching investing basics, into an experience students would trust and actually stick with. Schools and program leaders needed a platform that explains investing in plain language, keeps teens engaged through short lessons and clear progress, and helps first-time investors feel confident using and understanding their portfolio.
The core challenge for Gifted Savings was to turn a complex AI fintech model, gifting real investment assets and teaching investing basics, into an experience students would trust and actually stick with. Schools and program leaders needed a platform that explains investing in plain language, keeps teens engaged through short lessons and clear progress, and helps first-time investors feel confident using and understanding their portfolio.
The core challenge for Gifted Savings was to turn a complex AI fintech model, gifting real investment assets and teaching investing basics, into an experience students would trust and actually stick with. Schools and program leaders needed a platform that explains investing in plain language, keeps teens engaged through short lessons and clear progress, and helps first-time investors feel confident using and understanding their portfolio.

Solution

The solution was a user-centered redesign of Gifted Savings’ student experience, grounded in real student journeys and school program needs. We simplified investing concepts into clear steps, rebuilt onboarding, portfolio tracking, and lessons to reduce fear and boost momentum, and strengthened a Figma system that made delivery consistent as the program scaled. We also introduced an AI strategy to explain concepts in plain language and guide learning with the right guardrails.

UX Strategy Roadmap

We followed a structured end-to-end product process, moving from research and synthesis into UX flows, UI design, implementation support, and post-launch evaluation.

This kept the Gifted Savings AI fintech experience grounded in student needs, easy to build, and measurable as we improved clarity, accessibility, and engagement.

My design vision was to make investing feel safe and simple for first-time students by turning a real portfolio into clear steps, quick wins, and optional AI guidance they can trust.

User Interface Design

Design System

Design System

User Experience Design

User Experience Design

Cohesive and Immersive Scenes

Cohesive and Immersive Scenes

The finalized Gifted Savings interface brings the design system to life, turning a gifted portfolio and investing lessons into a cohesive AI fintech learning experience. It guides students through onboarding, portfolio understanding, and lesson completion with clear structure, calm UI, and safe, optional AI support.

Built in Figma, the design system keeps the experience consistent, clear, and accessible across every screen. It unifies visual and interaction standards across student, teacher, and program needs, supporting repeatable learning flows, explainable AI guidance, and a platform schools and students can trust.

PLATFORM IMPACT METRICS

Real-world results from Gifted Savings, showing measurable gains in student confidence, investing understanding, and day-to-day engagement with their gifted portfolio and lessons.

Investing confidence

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Future-thinking mindset

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Completion rate

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Financial plan created

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TESTIMONIALS

These testimonials from students, teachers, and stakeholders validate real impact. They build trust and confirm the UX improvements increased investing clarity, lesson engagement, and student confidence.

"

“Investing finally feels like something I can do. I understand what I own and what it means.”

⸺ STUDENT

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“The lessons are short enough that I actually finish them. I don’t feel lost anymore.”

⸺ STUDENT

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“Investing finally feels like something I can do. I understand what I own and what it means.”

⸺ STUDENT

"

“The lessons are short enough that I actually finish them. I don’t feel lost anymore.”

⸺ TEACHER / COACH

"

“The experience is more consistent and easier to support across classrooms. It’s clearer what to do next.”

⸺ PROGRAM LEAD

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“Accessibility isn’t an afterthought anymore. The standards and checks made it easier to ship with confidence.”

⸺ OPERATIONS LEAD

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4th July 2025

Reach out anytime

happy to help.