AI-powered therapy platform delivering clinical-grade mental health care
Founding Designer
A founding designer role at a YC W24 mental health startup building an AI therapy app. Sonia is tackling one of the hardest design challenges — making an AI feel warm and trustworthy during vulnerable moments. High-impact work with real clinical outcomes.
Job description
Founding Designer position at Sonia (W24 batch). The role involves owning end-to-end design of their voice-first iOS app, focusing on user experience during vulnerable therapeutic moments. Responsibilities include user research, feature ideation, flow design, and prototyping with AI tools. The designer will address key questions about on-screen elements during therapy sessions, making therapeutic homework compelling, adding human warmth to AI interactions, and determining what the AI should personalize versus place in settings. Additional duties encompass website design, internal tools, and research onboarding flows. Required qualifications include mobile app design experience (preferably startups), AI tool proficiency, creative problem-solving for AI-specific UI challenges, and understanding of LLM capabilities. The team works 6 days/week in downtown SF, receives complimentary meals, and covers therapy expenses. Salary ranges $140K-$200K with 0.50%-1.00% equity.