2025’s design prompt:
We're living in a time where new technologies—AI, AR/VR, spatial computing—are rapidly reshaping how we live, work, and connect. But many of these systems are still hard to use, confusing, or not designed for everyone.
This year's challenge is to design for the unknown: create a solution that helps people navigate uncertainty. That could mean supporting new users, edge cases, or entirely new systems.
Your goal is to make the future less overwhelming and more human. Design for what doesn't exist yet.
Introduction
Participating in this designathon has been a challenging yet fulfilling experience that sharpened my ability to think on my feet, iterate quickly, and deliver effective design solutions under pressure, as well as enhance my ability to work in a cross-functional team. We had a variety of backgrounds and expertise, from Computer Science to Physics, and teammates much more experienced in VR/AR technology than I was.
Brainstorming
We brainstormed several ideas, ultimately combining our ideas and focusing on a final vision: a flood relief app that uses AR to guide residents away from flood dangers and towards safety.
StayAfloat — AR Navigation for Flood Emergencies
1-Day Designathon Project | Role: UI/UX Lead | 2025
Problem
Flash floods in areas like California are becoming more intense and unpredictable due to climate change. Traditional tools like Google Maps fail during these emergencies—they don't account for elevation, flood depth, or real-time shelter access. Residents, especially those on foot, struggle to assess safe routes and reach higher ground in critical moments, especially when flood depth can be visually misleading.
Design Challenge
How might we create an intuitive mobile app that helps people:
- Navigate safely using real-time elevation and flood data
- Avoid flooded or unsafe streets
- Receive localized flash flood alerts
- Find nearby walkable shelters
- Understand flood risks with AR overlays
- Support vulnerable groups, including the elderly
Target Audience
- Adults aged 18–65 in flood-prone urban and suburban areas
- Renters, homeowners, students, business owners, and lower-income individuals
- Especially designed to be accessible for the elderly
The Problem - Misjudged Water Depth during Flash Flooding
A common and deadly issue during flash floods is the misjudgment of water depth, especially when people are forced to make split-second decisions to escape rising waters. As climate change drives more frequent and severe flooding events in vulnerable areas like California, these tragic incidents are becoming increasingly common.
Date: April 20, 2025
Two people were found dead inside a submerged vehicle after trying to cross a flooded road. (ABC)
Date: March 28, 2025
Kyle Doan, a 5-year-old boy, was swept from his mother’s arms when their car became stranded in floodwaters. (CBS)
Date: February 17, 2023
In February 2023, a woman in Pax, West Virginia, misjudged the depth of floodwaters on a road. Her vehicle became submerged, and despite her efforts to rescue her 11-week-old son, the infant tragically drowned. Authorities emphasized the difficulty of judging water depth and the speed of moving water, urging the public not to drive through flooded areas. (WTVR)
My Role & Leadership
This was my first time leading a UI/UX team during a high-pressure, short-timeline designathon. I had to:
- Prioritize design goals on the fly as new challenges emerge
- Delegate tasks across our Figma file with clarity and freedom, while ensuring accountability
- Set up organized Figma pages across all team members for wireframing
- Learn new Figma techniques (such as auto-layout and variants) that significantly sped up our workflow and maintained consistency across several Figma pages
- Act as a bridge between design and tech in a cross-functional team
(2 computer science majors, 1 physics major, and informatics - myself)
UX Research & Insights
- Conducted a competitive analysis of apps like FEMA, Google Maps, MyRadar, Zoleo
- Identified gaps in AR guidance, elevation awareness, and accessibility
- Created 4 detailed personas to cover a range of real-life flood use cases—from college students to elderly homeowners
Key Features
AR Flood Depth Visualizer
- Point your phone to see water depth projections
- Voice Guidance accessibility feature in settings to enable audio warnings for visual inaccessibility
Real-Time Flood Overlay:
- View levels of low to highest risk of flooding to understand flood risk during critical moments
- View hotspots of dangerous flooding mapped in real-time reports by users
Accessibility in Mind:
- View high-contrast mode for elderly users or those who are visually challenged
Challenges & Lessons
- AR Accuracy: Tough to calibrate in poor visibility, learned how to simplify expectations
- Emergency UX: Focused on low cognitive load design for high-stress situations
- Cross-Disciplinary Learning: I learned how to sync design priorities with tech feasibility
What We Learned
- AR boosts spatial awareness and safety during emergencies
- Accessibility must be multi-modal: visual, auditory, and easy to navigate
Next Steps
- Add offline support + crowdsourced flooding reports
- Integrate with emergency services for up-to-date shelter data
- Expand language and accessibility settings
