Ant Insight

An AI-powered tool that simulates audience behavior across defined demographic profiles.

summary

I rebranded and created a website for an AI company that simulates human behavior through synthetic audiences.

deliverables

3 Stylescapes + Splash page

role + team

UX & Brand Designer w/ candycode

dates

2025

project overview

This project was done with candycode to design a brand identity for an AI startup company launched in 2025.

This project was done with candycode to design a brand identity for an AI startup company launched in 2025.

problem

Companies have traditionally used population balances and mathematical models that fail to represent the intricacies of human behavior.

solution

Craft a minimal but approchable brand that represents ant’s powerful algorithm to accurately represent the intricaices of human behavior

What is ant

Using the brief, I needed to define what Strategian was and the unique value it would bring to companies.

Using the brief, I needed to define what Strategian was and the unique value it would bring to companies.

what

  • an AI platform that creates synthetic audiences of specific demographics that mimic human behavior with high accuracy

who

  • Businesses in the industries of consulting, public policies, and real estate

why

  • Traditional user research is slow, costly, and hard to iterate at speed

  • Niche audeiences are hard to reach

  • Faster insight = faster decisions, launches, and pivots

In summary,

Ant would be a valuable tool because it is...

Precise

Adaptive

Cost-effective

research

competitive research

To understand how Ant could differentiate itself, I analyzed the branding and websites of two companies offering similar solutions.

To understand how Ant could differentiate itself, I analyzed the branding and websites of two companies offering similar solutions.

aaru.com

about

Aaru builds whole-world simulations that model complex human systems so decision-makers can predict, test, and shape real-world outcomes.

target users

  • governments

  • political campaigns

  • enterprises

brand

  • cerebral

  • provacative

  • power-oriented

societies.io

about

Societies enables instant, scalable research by simulating millions of deeply human personas to unlock insights from audiences traditional methods can’t reach.

target users

  • enterprise research

  • strategy

  • product teams

brand

  • sleek

  • futuristic

  • authoritative

user persona

I focused on this persona as it put in perspective the industry we were trying to reach.

Dr. Lisa Johnson
47; D.C
Deputy Director of Policy Strategy

Thoughtful

Ethtically driven

Risk-aware

goals

  • Design public policy that meaningfully improves people’s lives
  • Anticipate public reaction across diverse demographics
  • Reduce political, social, & economic risk

  • Design public policy that meaningfully improves people’s lives

  • Anticipate public reaction across diverse demographics

  • Reduce political, social, & economic risk

Pain Points

  • Traditional research is slow
  • Public attitudes change fast
  • Pilot programs are risky and expensive
  • AI is questionable

  • Traditional research is slow

  • Public attitudes change fast

  • Pilot programs are risky and expensive

  • AI is questionable

research synthesis

Competitive research revealed that existing platforms in the space tend to emphasize either large-scale, power-driven simulations or enterprise speed and efficiency, often resulting in experiences that feel authoritative and emotionally distant.

Paired with insights from the public policy persona, this highlighted an opportunity for Ant to differentiate by leading with a more human-centered approach- one that is ethically driven, risk-aware, and inclusive, without sacrificing technicality.

By positioning Ant more empathetical, precise and visually lighter within a traditionally dark, heavy tech landscape, the brand can feel both accessible and scientifically credible.

the design brief

I then studied the design brief to capture what the client how Ant wanted to feel.

BRAND ATTRIBUTES

-Precise

-Disruptive

-Borderless

-Holographic

-Synaptic

DOES NOT WANT

-Gimmicky

-Static

-Retro

-Manual

-Soulless

BUSINESS GOALS

-Reduce intimidation by making the company’s complexity feel approachable

-Demonstrate clear value and need

It became clear that Ant’s brand needed to strike a careful balance: legitimate and authoritative, yet inviting and human. While the technology is complex, the visual identity had to reduce intimidation and build trust through clarity, restraint, and warmth.

stylescapes

I presented two distinct style scapes to the client, each informed by insights from the research and grounded in the design brief.

Idea 1: Digital Twin

This style scape explores a digital-twin aesthetic, blending high tech feel with organic imagery to reflect how ANT precisely mirrors natural behavior. A vamped up red with soft, atmospheric nature imagery brings confident energy while keeping the experience grounded and approachable.

Technological

Technological

Energetic

Energetic

Natural

Natural

Idea 2: Minimal Ant

This style scape leans minimal, editorial, and enterprise-ready, Dithered nature imagery bridges the organic and the digital, pairing natural forms with a distinctly technological texture. I paired with a neutral, nature-inspired palette to establish trust, clarity, and credibility.

Minimal

Editorial

Neutral

After reviewing the first two style scapes, the client asked us to merge select elements from each to create a more unified expression of the brand.

Idea 1+2: Minimal Digital Ant

This final style scape brings together the strongest elements from both directions. It preserves the crimson red as a bold signal of ANT and insight, carries forward the dithered nature imagery to express the digital-twin concept, and adopts a cleaner, more restrained UI to meet enterprise expectations.

Clean

Scientific

Subtle Technology

crafting the brand

THE BRAND

Systems in Nature

This brand was designed with nature as its foundation. Ant draws from natural systems- because it is replicating them. The visual language leans into organic imagery to reflect how intelligence emerges in nature, while remaining fresh, clean, and scientific in its execution.

To balance nature and technology, I used dithered effects across natural imagery, creating a technological feel without losing warmth. The crimson red requested by the client remains grounded by soft blue and muted beige as a subtle nod to the natural world. The result is a system that feels precise yet inviting- technological, but nature-centered.

The Logo

The “A” in Ant is an ant head to symbolize collective intelligence, balancing soft curves with sharp edges to feel technological yet approachable.

Color pallette

Crimson red anchors the brand, while nature-rooted neutrals and cool tones create balance, trust, and technological calm.

Color pallette

Crimson red anchors the brand, while nature-rooted neutrals and cool tones create balance, trust, and technological calm.

typography

Ant’s typography balances technology and nature- pairing Inconsolata’s technical precision with Onest’s softer, more organic tone.

Headers/Headlines

Inconsolata

Inconsolata conveys quiet technical authority- rooted in code and computation, with a precise, modern, and intentionally utilitarian feel.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

Body

Onest

Onest is a contemporary sans-serif that feels clean, rational, and digitally native- designed for clarity and scalability across modern tech interfaces.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

crafting the brand

THE BRAND

Systems in Nature

This brand was designed with nature as its foundation. Ant draws from natural systems- because it is replicating them. The visual language leans into organic imagery to reflect how intelligence emerges in nature, while remaining fresh, clean, and scientific in its execution.

To balance nature and technology, I used dithered effects across natural imagery, creating a technological feel without losing warmth. The crimson red requested by the client remains grounded by soft blue and muted beige as a subtle nod to the natural world. The result is a system that feels precise yet inviting- technological, but nature-centered.

The Logo

The “A” in Ant is an ant head to symbolize collective intelligence, balancing soft curves with sharp edges to feel technological yet approachable.

The Logo

The “A” in Ant is an ant head to symbolize collective intelligence, balancing soft curves with sharp edges to feel technological yet approachable.

typography

Ant’s typography balances technology and nature—pairing Inconsolata’s technical precision with Onest’s softer, more organic tone.

Headers/Headlines

Inconsolata

Inconsolata conveys quiet technical authority- rooted in code and computation, with a precise, modern, and intentionally utilitarian feel.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

Body

Onest

Onest is a contemporary sans-serif that feels clean, rational, and digitally native—designed for clarity and scalability across modern tech interfaces.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

typography

Ant’s typography balances technology and nature—pairing Inconsolata’s technical precision with Onest’s softer, more organic tone.

Headers/Headlines

Inconsolata

Inconsolata conveys quiet technical authority- rooted in code and computation, with a precise, modern, and intentionally utilitarian feel.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

Body

Onest

Onest is a contemporary sans-serif that feels clean, rational, and digitally native—designed for clarity and scalability across modern tech interfaces.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

0123456789

Color pallette

Crimson red anchors the brand, while nature-rooted neutrals and cool tones create balance, trust, and technological calm.

creating the website

The project only called for branding and two stylescapes. However, I wanted to take it a step further to see what the brand I created would look on a website.

Using their current website as bones, I thought about what sections and features were important to showcase.

business/design goals

Reduce intimidation

Demonstrate clear value and need

call to action

Join waitlist

Inquire more

sections

1

Hero: In the previous hero, users didn’t immediately understand what Ant does. To address this, I added a concise blurb next to the logo in the top navigation for instant clarity.

2

Overarching info: This section establishes what Ant is, who it’s for, where it fits, and the impact it delivers. Because the content is information-dense, I organized it into a slide-based format to reduce cognitive load and introduced a clear CTA.

3

Why valuable: I wanted to create an eye-catching graphic on highlighting how Ant adapts to any question, allowing users to test scenarios dynamically and evaluate outcomes at any stage.

4

How its measured: A visual breakdown of the metrics Ant measures, alongside a comparison to other LLM models in the market.

5

Contact: A streamlined contact form that allows users to either inquire or join the waitlist. Previously, these were separated, but consolidating them into a single form with selectable options improves clarity and reduces friction.

creating the website

The project only called for branding and two stylescapes. However, I wanted to take it a step further to see what the brand I created would look on a website.

Using their current website as bones, I thought about what sections and features were important to showcase.

1

Hero

2

Overarching Info

3

Why Valuable

4

How its Measured

5

Contact

business/design goals

  • Reduce intimidation

  • Demonstrate clear value and need for ant

call to action

  1. Join waitlist

  1. Inquire more

sections

1

Hero: In the previous hero, users didn’t immediately understand what Ant does. To address this, I added a concise blurb next to the logo in the top navigation for instant clarity.

2

Overarching info: This section establishes what Ant is, who it’s for, where it fits, and the impact it delivers. Because the content is information-dense, I organized it into a slide-based format to reduce cognitive load and introduced a clear CTA.

3

Why valuable: I wanted to create an eye-catching graphic on highlighting how Ant adapts to any question, allowing users to test scenarios dynamically and evaluate outcomes at any stage.

4

How its measured: A visual breakdown of the metrics Ant measures, alongside a comparison to other LLM models in the market.

5

Contact: A streamlined contact form that allows users to either inquire or join the waitlist. Previously, these were separated, but consolidating them into a single form with selectable options improves clarity and reduces friction.

Final product

link to website

Final product

relfection

results

Designed a brand and splash page from the ground up for an early stage start up

Received positive feedback from the founder and key stakeholders

Established a clear, conversion-oriented foundation for future product growth

reflection

Ant was my first real-world project, and one I was genuinely grateful to take on. It challenged me to think beyond aesthetics and really understand the space a company is stepping into. I learned how important it is to study context- competition, audience, and positioning- before making design decisions. This project showed me how powerful a strong brand and website can be, not just visually, but in their ability to shape perception, create confidence, and move a company forward.

Ant was my first real-world project, and one I was genuinely grateful to take on. It challenged me to think beyond aesthetics and really understand the space a company is stepping into. I learned how important it is to study context- competition, audience, and positioning- before making design decisions. This project showed me how powerful a strong brand and website can be, not just visually, but in their ability to shape perception, create confidence, and move a company forward.

key takeaways

Communication is inspiration

A clear takeaway is the value of input from all directions. Collaborating with engineers and teammates who operate daily in the tech space brought perspectives I wouldn’t have reached on my own.

Creating a website is interpretation

Delivering a brand system and then seeing how it’s interpreted in implementation reinforced why clear style guides and usage principles matter. This experience helped me better anticipate handoff moments, design with flexibility in mind, and ensure that a brand can remain cohesive even when executed by different teams.