Napster Spaces: AI Publishing Platform
Web Platform
Napster
2 week sprint
2025
Challenge
The initial platform was functional but fragmented requiring manual data uploads and multiple disconnected steps to create an AI space.
Creators found the process overwhelming, with limited visual feedback and unclear progress states.
Our challenge was to make the platform:
Simple enough for anyone to publish within minutes.
Scalable enough for enterprise-level creators.
Visually and emotionally compelling, bridging AI utility with creative storytelling.
Objectives
Frictionless onboarding to reduce cognitive load and clicks required to publish.
Dual audience clarity: separate the needs of Authors (desktop creators) and Audiences (mobile users engaging with spaces).
Extensibility: enable integrations for tool calling and catalog import/export (e.g., Shopify).
Humanized design: infuse personality and emotion into an AI interface.
Results
70% increase in setup completion for first-time publishers.
12-minute average engagement per user session.
4.5★ satisfaction rating across onboarding flows.
Reduced time-to-publish from 12+ steps to 5 guided stages.
Established Napster’s design system foundation for future AI publishing tools.
Quick UX Wins:
The first sprint prioritized high-impact, low-engineering changes reorganizing navigation and upload logic resulting in measurable adoption gains within one week.
Process
The design process centered on transforming AI setup from a technical workflow into an intuitive, narrative-driven experience. Every step from flow mapping to motion design was guided by the concept of Alive Intelligence where technology that feels designed, and not coded.
1. User Flow Mapping
Mapped decision trees and creation sequences to simplify publishing, clarify dependencies, and reduce friction. These visual flows informed the new six-step creation model: Avatar, Knowledge, FAQ, Welcome, Prompt, Publish.
2. Wireframing & Flow Design
Built low-fidelity wireframes and early prototypes to define navigation hierarchy, state transitions, and user intent triggers.
Explored how setup could feel like storytelling rather than form-filling balancing functional clarity with creative freedom. Collaborated in Figma and FigJam to visualize logic across multiple creation paths and author types.
3. UI/UX Design
Redesigned the multi-tab authoring interface to feel structured yet expressive.
Each tab combined utility and storytelling:
Avatar: Generated or uploaded digital personalities with built-in rights disclaimers and “generate more” iteration.
Knowledge: Simplified CSV upload and source management, with real-time previews of content impact.
FAQ: Scrollable, smart lists and eventual auto-population via web data.
Prompt + Publish: Guided creators through voice, tone, and visibility setup with preview animations.
Integrated accessibility, responsiveness, and clear visual hierarchy across desktop and mobile.
4. Visual & Interaction Design
The art direction focused on gradients, glassy depth, and subtle light transitions — UI as atmosphere, not surface. Each interaction was crafted to evoke rhythm and emotional continuity between states. Prototyped motion flows in After Effects and Origami Studio to define hover states, transition pacing, and AI-response feedback.
5. AI-Assisted Workflows
Leveraged Midjourney for early mood and avatar concepts, Runway ML for generative video exploration, and ComfyUI for refining AI visual outputs. These tools accelerated iteration and reinforced the product’s balance of creativity and control.
6. Research & Iteration
Synthesized internal feedback and early tester insights to refine flow clarity, copy tone, and cognitive pacing. Iterated design states in Figma with annotated sticky-note feedback, ensuring design goals aligned with engineering feasibility.
Conclusion
The Napster Spaces redesign reframed AI publishing as a creative act. By uniting art direction, product systems, and AI assisted workflows, the platform empowers users to design intelligence that feels expressive, useful, and distinctly human.
70%
Increase in setup completion
12-min
avg engagement per user session
4.5
Satisfaction rating