This is the Engineering Culture Podcast, from the people behind InfoQ.com and the QCon conferences.
In this podcast Shane Hastie, Lead Editor for Culture & Methods spoke to Neeraj Mainkar about the challenges of developing safe and usable medical device software in areas where software bugs can have life-and-death consequences, and how to approach these challenges through rigorous processes, user-centered design, and leveraging emerging technologies.

Read a transcript of this interview: https://bit.ly/3VLYtQP

Subscribe to the Software Architects’ Newsletter for your monthly guide to the essential news and experience from industry peers on emerging patterns and technologies:
https://www.infoq.com/software-architects-newsletter 

Upcoming Events:

QCon London (April 7-9, 2025)
Discover new ideas and insights from senior practitioners driving change and innovation in software development.
https://qconlondon.com/ 

InfoQ Dev Summit Boston (June 9-10, 2025)
Actionable insights on today’s critical dev priorities.
devsummit.infoq.com/conference/boston2025

InfoQ Dev Summit Munich (Save the date - October 2025)

QCon San Francisco 2025 (17-21, 2025)
Get practical inspiration and best practices on emerging software trends directly from senior software developers at early adopter companies.
https://qconsf.com/ 

InfoQ Dev Summit New York (Save the date - December 2025)


The InfoQ Podcasts: 
Weekly inspiration to drive innovation and build great teams from senior software leaders. Listen to all our podcasts and read interview transcripts:

- The InfoQ Podcast https://www.infoq.com/podcasts/ 
- Engineering Culture Podcast by InfoQ https://www.infoq.com/podcasts/#engineering_culture 
- Generally AI: https://www.infoq.com/generally-ai-podcast/ 

Follow InfoQ:
- Mastodon: https://techhub.social/@infoq 
- Twitter: twitter.com/InfoQ
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/infoq
- Facebook: bit.ly/2jmlyG8
- Instagram: @infoqdotcom
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/infoq

Write for InfoQ:Learn and share the changes and innovations in professional software development.
- Join a community of ex
perts.
- Increase your visibility.
- Grow your career.
https://www.infoq.com/write-for-infoq

Transcript

Building Safe and Usable Medical Device Software: A Conversation with Neeraj Mainkar

How to design experiences that feel seamless without users consciously noticing.

Invisible Usability

🔍 How do we make AR, VR, voice interfaces, and wearables truly effortless to use?

Emerging technologies are transforming the way we interact with the digital world, but without good usability, they can feel frustrating and confusing. In this episode, we explore how to design seamless, intuitive, and frustration-free experiences for cutting-edge tech like:

✅ Augmented Reality (AR) – How to make digital overlays feel natural
✅ Virtual Reality (VR) – Avoiding motion sickness & creating intuitive navigation
✅ Voice Interfaces – Making AI assistants feel more human
✅ Wearables – Designing for glanceable, on-the-go interactions

💡 Why You Should Listen:

Learn real-world usability strategies from companies like Apple, Oculus, and Google
Discover the biggest usability mistakes and how to avoid them
Get a sneak peek into the future of usability for brain-computer interfaces, gesture controls, and AI-powered UX
🌍 Whether you're a UX designer, product creator, or tech enthusiast, this episode will change the way you think about usability in next-gen technology!

🎧 Listen Now & Level Up Your UX Game!

💬 Join the Conversation!
What’s an emerging technology you love, but think could be more user-friendly? Drop a comment!

🔔 Enjoyed this episode?

LIKE & SHARE to help more people discover it!
FOLLOW for more deep dives into the world of UX!
#Usability #EmergingTech #UXDesign #AR #VR #VoiceUX #Wearables #FrictionlessDesign #UIUX #ProductDesign #DigitalExperience

Usability for NextGen

In Episode 9 of Discussing Stupid, host Virgil Carroll is joined by co-host Cole from High Monkey to break down a frustrating reality of modern work: the overwhelming number of collaboration tools that don’t actually improve teamwork. With so many platforms—Slack, Teams, ClickUp, Figma, email, and more—why does collaboration feel more chaotic than ever?

Virgil and Cole explore how the abundance of tools often leads to scattered conversations, lost information, and inefficiency, rather than better collaboration. They discuss real-world examples of how context gets lost in endless message threads, how teams juggle disconnected platforms, and why no single tool seems to solve the problem.

As the conversation unfolds, they dig into why the issue isn’t just the tools, but also the processes behind them. They explore what effective workplace collaboration really looks like, sharing insights on how teams can reduce tool overload, set clear communication guidelines, and establish a single source of truth to prevent chaos.

To close, they offer practical takeaways on improving collaboration—whether through better workflows, tool integration, or just picking a platform and sticking to it. Listeners will walk away with a clearer understanding of why collaboration is broken and what steps can actually make it better.

Join us every two weeks for new episodes, and don’t forget to like, review, and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. For more resources and updates, visit www.discussingstupid.com.

(0:00) - Intro
(1:24) - Modern collaboration: Many tools, little clarity
(4:00) - Why the "perfect collaboration tool" is a false promise
(7:30) - The path to streamlining collaboration
(12:00) - It's about strategy, not just software
(15:00) - Outro


Subscribe for Email Updates on Our Website:
https://www.discussingstupid.com/

Watch Us on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@discussingstupid

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Soundcloud:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/discussing-stupid-a-byte-sized-podcast-on-stupid-ux/id1428145024
https://open.spotify.com/show/0c47grVFmXk1cco63QioHp?si=87dbb37a4ca441c0
https://soundcloud.com/discussing-stupid

Check Us Out on Socials:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/discussing-stupid
https://www.instagram.com/discussingstupid/
https://www.facebook.com/discussingstupid
https://x.com/DiscussStupid


The chaos of modern workplace collaboration

In dieser Episode sprechen Frede und Matthias über die größten Herausforderungen und Chancen für UX-Profis, denn die Branche wandelt sich rasant. Während KI, Entlassungen und der Kampf um Rollen den Jobmarkt prägen, bleibt die Unsicherheit groß. Gleichzeitig stellt sich die Frage, ob der ROI UX stärkt oder Kreativität erstickt. Zum Schluss wird es futuristisch, denn Neurotechnologie und Brain-Computer-Interfaces könnten UX völlig neu definieren.
  |     
⏳ ZEITSTEMPEL  |     
[00:00:00] Begrüßung & neues Episodenformat  |     
[00:03:07] Satya Nadellas Vision: UX ohne klassische Benutzeroberflächen?  |     
[00:06:14] KI & Automatisierung: UX-DesignerInnen als OrchestratorInnen von Agenten  |     
[00:12:32] UX-Jobmarkt 2025: Entlassungen, KI-Konkurrenz & neue Skills  |     
[00:24:46] UX in Produktteams: Wird UX als eigenständige Disziplin verschwinden?  |     
[00:31:21] ROI von UX: Warum sich UX-Profis mit Business-Impact befassen müssen  |     
[00:37:39] Hat ROI die UX-Qualität getötet? Kreativität vs. Wirtschaftlichkeit  |     
[00:38:20] Neurotechnologie & UX: Brain-Computer-Interfaces als neue Herausforderung  |     
[00:45:08] Fazit: UX verschwindet nicht - es verändert sich!  |     
  |     
  |     
🔗 Artikel & Studien
  |     
Satya Nadella: Microsofts AGI Plan
https://www.dwarkeshpatel.com/p/satya-nadella 
  |     
Satya Nadella: Zukunft von SaaS
  |     
Ilma Andrade: UX-Fehler vermeiden
https://medium.com/design-bootcamp/4-painful-mistakes-that-will-get-ux-designers-replaced-by-ai-657c3809f66d
  |     
Bettina D'avila: KI braucht Designer
https://medium.com/p/06c30e2601b8
  |     
KI und UX
https://rosenfeldmedia.com/ai-is-the-future-of-ux-heres-how-to-prepare/
  |     
Jeff Sauro:UX-Jobmarkt 2025
https://measuringu.com/how-does-the-ux-job-market-look-for-2025/
  |     
Jared Spool: UX-Markt Chaos
https://measuringu.com/how-does-the-ux-job-market-look-for-2025/
  |     
Yao Adantor: UX-Entlassungen unvermeidbar?
https://uxuniversity.io/p/are-ux-layoffs-inevitable-or-are
  |     
Jon Upshaw: UX-Jobs aufgeben
https://uxplanet.org/why-i-stopped-applying-for-ux-jobs-and-why-you-likely-will-too-dfd336f254b1
  |     
Pascal Potvin: Design verändert sich
https://uxdesign.cc/the-design-game-has-changed-and-i-dont-know-where-i-fit-anymore-d1e414c2ea9c
  |     
Trevor Calabaro: ROI von UX
https://www.userinterviews.com/blog/calculating-ux-roi-framework
  |     
Jas Deogan: Hat ROI UX getötet?
https://uxplanet.org/has-roi-killed-ux-56ada3cc878f
  |     
Christina Schneegass: Neurotech & HCI
https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/icom-2024-0007/html
  |     
Oliver Inderwildi: Mind & Machine
https://uxmag.com/articles/navigating-the-convergence-of-mind-machine-on-the-neural-frontier-the-implications-of-merged-consciousness
  |     
  |     
📅 VERANSTALTUNGEN & WEBINARE
  |     
German UPA Panel: UX-Jobs & Bewerbungen 2025 (8. April) 
https://germanupa.de/events
  |     
  |     
📣 COMMUNITY-AUFRUF
  |     
Was denkt ihr?
  |     
Seid ihr bereit für eine Zukunft ohne klassische UIs? 
Welche neuen UX-Skills haltet ihr für essenziell? 
UX-Jobs in eurem Unternehmen: Wachstum oder Rückgang? 
Sollte ROI der zentrale Erfolgsfaktor für UX sein? 
  |   
Schreibt uns eure Meinung auf ...  |     
Slack: https://app.slack.com/client/T1S37D8P5/C1S54B3SN  |     
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/germanupa/  |     
der direkt per Mail an social@germanupa.de!
  |     
  |     
📢 UNTERSTÜTZT DEN PODCAST!
  |     
Hat dir die Episode gefallen?
Dann folge uns, teile die Episode und hinterlasse eine Bewertung - das hilft uns enorm! 
Bleibt neugierig und bis zur nächsten Folge! 

UX in diesem Monat | März 2025

In Episode 13.1, host Virgil Carroll is joined by co-host Cole and developer Chad to talk about something deceptively complicated: color. Specifically, the intersection of color palettes, visual design, and accessibility—and why getting it wrong can tank your user experience.

While color choices often get made in design tools or branding meetings, they don’t always translate well to real-world implementation. The crew breaks down why the prettiest colors can create the ugliest accessibility problems once they hit the web.
They dig into key challenges and lessons, including:

✅ Why accessible design isn’t just about having the right colors—it's about using them correctly
✅ How contrast ratios break down across devices and screen sizes
✅ Why bright and “fun” color palettes often fail accessibility testing
✅ How to bring visual flair to a site without sacrificing inclusivity
✅ The difference between decorative vs. purposeful color use—and why it matters

From failed color combinations to misused font sizing, Virgil, Cole, and Chad share their own battle scars from High Monkey’s recent site redesign—and explain how inclusive design forces teams to think functionally, not just aesthetically.

If you’ve ever struggled to make your brand colors work on the web—or if you're tired of your site failing contrast tests but you still want some color pop—this episode’s for you.

For more conversations about digital strategy, UX, accessibility, and all the ways we get it wrong (and how to get it right), visit www.discussingstupid.com and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.


(0:00) - Intro
(2:43) - Accessibility and your brand's color palette
(6:03) - Factoring in font sizes
(7:54) - I still want color pop on my website!!
(11:36) - The approach we took with our new site's color scheme
(15:13) - Outro

Keys to balancing aesthetics and accessibility in web design

This podcast from Web Critique Hub talks about how first impressions play a crucial role in a person liking a website, and how design should be inspected. It also talks about the importance of simplicity, accessibility, and quality over quantity. It builds on our earlier screencast, shifting from usability basics to user impact. People do not need to have a technical background to be a part of the WCH community. 
Check us out  at https://webcritiquehub.wordpress.com/

This podcast includes a PSA about the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a nonprofit that protects online privacy, free speech, and digital freedom. Learn more at https://www.eff.org/

Link to YouTube screencast video - https://youtu.be/7_BCxwa-v1U

Creative Commons background music credits:-
1.
"Morning" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
2.
Music: "Calmant" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Web Critique Hub - First Impressions, Design, and Digital Experience

In dieser Spezialausgabe berichtet Matthias direkt von den Konferenzen UX360 und UXDX aus Berlin. Mit dabei: fünf exklusive Interviews mit führenden Stimmen aus UX Research und UX Design. Unter anderem spricht Barbara Koop (Philips) über risikoreduzierendes Design im Gesundheitswesen, Inga Scharfenberg (Freenet) über Sandbox-Testing jenseits klassischer A/B-Tests, Utkarsh Seth (Google) über echten Impact und Planung als kritischer Faktor im Research, Lloyd Yoo (Stravito) über Sichtbarkeit von Insights im Unternehmen und Conor Joyce (Microsoft) über den Wandel vom Design- zum Interaktionssystem im Zeitalter von AI.
  |  
Und die Episode zeigt auf, dass auch UX Research an einem Wendepunkt steht und dass die zentrale Frage nicht mehr lautet „Welche Methode nutzen wir?“, sondern: „Wie erzeugt unser Insight nachweisbare Wirkung?“
  |  
ZEITSTEMPEL  |  
[00:00:00] Intro  |  
[00:01:44] ENGLISCH: Barbara Koop, Head of Usability @ Philips  |  
[00:06:53] DEUTSCH: Inga Scharfenberg, Manager Market Research & Customer Advocacy @ Freenet  |  
[00:12:48] ENGLISCH: Utkarsh Seth, Senior Staff UX Manager @ Google  |  
[00:23:04] ENGLISCH: Lloyd Yoo, Principal – UXR / Sales Director @ Stravito  |  
[00:29:49] DEUTSCH: Takeaways von UX360  |  
[00:31:58] ENGLISCH: Connor Joyce, Senior User Researcher @ Microsoft  |  
[00:38:47] DEUTSCH: Takeaways von UXDX  |  
    |  
    |  
LINKS UND RESSOURCEN
    |  
Barbara Koop, Head of Usability @ Philips  |  
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarakoop/  |  
    |  
Inga Scharfenberg, Manager Market Research & Customer Advocacy @ Freenet  |  
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/inga-scharfenberg-6a170a1b7/  |  
    |  
Utkarsh Seth, Senior Staff UX Manager @ Google  |  
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/utkarshseth/  |  
- Buch: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0F3B4JZVV  |  
    |  
Lloyd Yoo, Principal – UXR / Sales Director @ Stravito  |  
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lloydyoo/  |  
    |  
Connor Joyce, Senior User Researcher @ Microsoft  |  
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/connectconnor/  |  
- Newsletter: https://eiap.substack.com/  |  
- Buch: https://www.google.de/books/edition/Bridging_Intention_to_Impact/7xANEQAAQBAJ  |  
  |  
DANKE FÜR DEIN FEEDBACK UND SUPPORT  |  
Wie sollen wir in Zukunft mit englischsprachigen Interviews umgehen – Englischer Originalton oder lieber automatische Übersetzung? Lass es uns in den Kommentaren wissen!
  |  
Abonniere auch gerne den Podcast auf deiner Lieblingsplattform und teile ihn mit deinem UX-Netzwerk.
  |  
Noch mehr UX-Wissen gibt’s unter:
www.germanupa.de
  |  


UX in diesem Monat | Mai 2025 - Live von der UX360 & UXDX 2025

Гост в епизод 5 на сезон 1 е Цветомир Георгиев – дизайнер с впечатляващ опит и интересна професионална траектория, която започва още през 2010 г. като съосновател и мениджър на дизайн студио в Бургас. От дълги години като фрийлансър с мащабно портфолио от клиенти, до мой колега в The World Bank Group – Цвето винаги е демонстрирал отдаденост и хъс в работата си, каквито рядко се срещат! 💯

В макар и леко по-дългия ни разговор, с Цвето определено засегнахме доста надълбоко теми като – ЗАЩО тестването с потребители е изключително важно, КАК изглежда един успешно проведен тест и КАКВИ методи на комуникиране биха ни спечелили само позитиви. 🤩

🔔 Абонирайте се за канала, за да не изпускате нови епизоди!

🙏 Ако искате да подкрепите подкаста и да помогнете за създаването на още по-качествено съдържание, можете да го направите в Patreon:
👉 ⁠ patreon.com/UXPRESSPodcast
⁠
🎁 А вече можеш и да направиш еднократно Дарение ❤️: 
👉 ⁠https://uxpress-podcast.kit.com/products/uxpress-podcast

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

🚀 Искате бързо да развиете нови знания в UX?Може да имам нещо полезно за вас:

👉 Вземи Practical Figma 101 с 20% OFF – научи се да работиш уверено, с моя лична подкрепа:

✅ ⁠https://adplist.org/mentors/pavel-gospodinov?session=40954-practical-figma-101-with-pavel

А също така и...

👉 Абонирайте се за Uxcel Pro Yearly с 25% OFF чрез тези линкове:

💻 Десктоп: ⁠https://uxcel.com?ref=pavel57⁠

📱 Мобилна: ⁠https://uxcel.app.link/invite?ref=pavel57

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

📢 Последвайте ни и в другите ни канали, за да не изпускате нищо важно:

✅ Всички линкове на UXPRESS Podcast: ⁠https://linktr.ee/uxpress_podcast

Цветозар Георгиев: Тествай възможно най-рано 🤝 | UXPRESS Podcast | #S1E5

Discussing how Ethical design can improve user interactions and overall experience 

Ethical Usability

UXPRESS Podcast е мястото, където UX професионалисти и ентусиасти се срещат, за да обменят идеи, опит и вдъхновение. Във всеки епизод Павел Господинов разговаря с водещи имена от UX сферата в България, споделя ценни съвети и дава гласност на важни теми в дизайна. Ако искаш да се развиваш, да черпиш нови знания и да бъдеш част от UX общността – този подкаст е за теб! 🚀

A space where internet users share feedback on website usability and digital experience.
https://webcritiquehub.wordpress.com/

I specialize on product design, human experience, UX design, psychology and application UI design

Software engineers, architects and team leads have found inspiration to build better, high performing teams by listening to the weekly InfoQ Podcast. We have achieved that by interviewing some of the top CTOs, engineers and technology directors from companies like Uber, Netflix and more. Over 500,000 downloads in the last 3 years.

Discussing Stupid returns to the airwaves to transform digital facepalms into teachable moments—all in the time it takes to enjoy your coffee break! Sponsored by High Monkey, this podcast dives into ‘stupid’ practices across websites and Microsoft collaboration tools, among other digital realms. 

Our "byte-sized" bi-weekly episodes are packed with expert insights and a healthy dose of humor. Discussions focus on five key areas: Business Process & Collaboration, UX/IA, Inclusive Design, Content & Search, and Performance & SEO. 

Join us and let’s start making the digital world a bit less stupid, one episode at a time.

Dieser Podcast wird produziert von der German UPA. Sie ist die größte Vertretung für Fachkräfte aus dem Bereich User Experience (UX) und Usability im deutschsprachigen Raum. www.germanupa.de

New tracks tagged #Usability