Service Designer

The mission

CrossSense is a breakthrough AI-powered application for augmented reality smartglasses designed to help people with dementia maintain their autonomy. Because the technology sees what the user sees and hears what they hear, our AI companion, Wispy, provides real-time guidance, a "cognitive scaffold", to assist with memory gaps, task execution, and social interaction.

We agree with one of the experts by experience who told us that life without joy is not worth living. CrossSense isn't about managing decline; it's about enabling people to live fulfilling lives on their own terms. The system acts as a "missing piece" that bridges the gap between what a person intends to do and what the condition disrupts. Rather than performing tasks for the user, we support their existing cognitive resources to maintain functional independence and dignity.

We have been developing extended reality software since 2016. We are finalists for the Longitude Prize on Dementia, with R&D funding from NIHR and Innovate UK. This summer we begin our third research study, with commercial release planned for late 2026.

The role

As our Service Designer at the "tip of the spear" of the next computing platform, you will lead our co-production practice during a critical transition from R&D to commercial scale. You will bridge the gap between the lived experience of over 250 Experts by Experience and our technical development team, ensuring our agentic AI software remains a compassionate, evidence-based tool. This is a "product-leaning" service design role where you will not only map user journeys but also produce and integrate the visual and auditory assets that make Wispy an effective, dignified companion. Your role is to ensure that as we deliver compelling smartphone and immersive smartglasses experiences with utmost impact, with the user experience remaining intuitive, accessible, and grounded in user trust.

What you'll deliver

• Service blueprinting – design and map the full end-to-end user journey, managing the conversion funnel from the smartphone app to smartglasses.
• Co-production synthesis – lead the co-design sessions and consultation workshops, translating qualitative insights into "Participant Voice" records that inform the backend knowledge graph and AI orchestration.
• High-fidelity prototypes and assets – produce and manage audio-visual assets (icons, colour-coded labels, animations) that are ready for integration into our Unity-based client.
• Inclusive design systems – develop and maintain accessibility protocols that support users with diverse cognitive needs, ensuring features like subtle multisensory overlays and therapy-aligned conversation, are functional, accessible and respectful.
• Clinical study support – collaborate with science leads and researchers to ensure user experience elements are rigorously integrated into our studies and the market product.

Key responsibilities

• Plan and facilitate co-design sessions with people living with dementia and their carers, ensuring the product is shaped by diverse lived experiences.
• Collaborate closely with the technical team to understand Unity asset requirements and assist in adding refined design elements directly into the project repository.
• Translate complex user needs into actionable technical requirements for the backend and AR teams, particularly regarding personalising Wispy’s behaviour patterns.
• Conduct regular internal testing sessions, providing technical feedback to the developers to ensure the AI's "cognitive scaffold" feels natural and non-intrusive.
• Partner with clinical researchers like to specify science-driven design features, such as dual-coded multisensory cues for object naming and therapy-aligned protocols.
• Map "prevent, reduce, delay" pathways for different user cohorts to help generate commissioning-ready evidence for health and social care providers.
• Build co-production capacity within the multidisciplinary team, providing training on meaningful engagement with vulnerable populations.

Required experience

• 3–5 years of experience in service design or participatory design, ideally within a healthtech, medical device, or digital health context.
• Experience working with Unity-based projects, with a clear understanding of how to produce, format, and manage assets for a technical repository
• Proven ability to facilitate safe and ethical co-production sessions with vulnerable populations or people with diverse cognitive needs.
• Strong visual communication skills for storyboarding and journey mapping, alongside the ability to create high-fidelity, interactive prototypes.
• Demonstrated ability in translating complex qualitative user feedback into actionable product requirements for a multidisciplinary team
• Experience in mapping complex user journeys across multiple hardware platforms (e.g., mobile to wearable).

Nice to have

• Familiarity with individual Cognitive Stimulation Therapy or other evidence-based dementia care protocols.
• Knowledge of XR (AR/VR/MR) interaction design and the unique challenges of immersive interfaces.
• Understanding of data ethics and privacy-by-design, particularly in the context of ICO Regulatory Sandbox participation.
• Experience navigating the NHS or social care systems, including an understanding of commissioning pathways.

What we offer

• Salary: £49,920 (4-day week) to £62,400 (5-day week) - will increase as we raise finance
• Equity: 1% stake plus future EMI share options
• Flexibility: Open to a 4-day working week; hybrid mostly remote model (London office >2 days/month).
• Location: Hybrid – London office + remote-friendly.
• Benefits: Workplace pension, flexible hours, learning budget, home office support
• Impact: Directly shape a product that supports people living with dementia, their loved ones and communities.
• Contract type: Permanent with 6 month probation period.

How we work

We believe it's never too late to pursue meaningful goals. We think long-term while acting in the moment. We work as a joint effort, supporting each other's potential, just as CrossSense empowers user agency to be independent.

We make room for questioning, uncertainty, and diverse perspectives. We prioritise kindness and shared benefits over competition. We honour the trust placed in us by the 250+ people with lived experience of dementia who have shaped CrossSense through co-design and consultation: their unmet needs, privacy, and dignity guide our trajectory.

Start date

Late February

Application process

We'll interview selected candidates on a rolling basis.

How to apply

Please submit your CV along with a short note (maximum 500 words) describing a co-design project you have led. Explain how you would approach facilitating a session with people living with dementia, specifically considering how to support their functional identity and cognitive resilience. We encourage applications from people with lived experience of dementia in their environment.