Retouched AI
A B2B & B2C AI powered image removal Web App, built & designed for everyday users, photographers, and businesses.
The project focused on auditing current friction, redefining target user personas, and redeveloping core editing features to drive accessibility for non-technical creators. A comprehensive UX/UI redesign of Retouched.ai aimed at transforming a complex, technical black-box tool into a consumer-friendly application.
Problem
The original platform had a powerful AI engine but suffered from low conversion. Users were confused by the navigation, lacked trust, and struggled with a disjointed mobile experience.
Expected Outcome
- Eliminate friction (15-90%)
- Increase user satisfaction
- Retain old & new users
- Increase uploads among different user types
Role
Product Designer & UX Researcher
Timeline
3 Months
Team
1 Designer, 3 Developers
Week 1 — Research & Define Data
We started with “HOW MIGHT WE” statements: How might we be able to convey the purpose of this app to the users? How can we make our product feel familiar and seamless? How are we different from our competitors? How can we establish trust?
Project Definition & Expected Business Outcome
A comprehensive UX/UI redesign of Retouched.ai aimed at transforming a complex, technical black-box tool into a consumer-friendly application. We focused on eliminating technical complexities to identify all possible frictional edge cases.
Our Goals & Focus Areas
/ Convert technical friction into a guided introductory flow.
/ Use progressive disclosure to reveal advanced AI tools.
/ Establish a professional and trustworthy visual identity to build loyalty.
Constraints & Limitations
/ The existing architecture was highly rigid due to legacy code
/ Limitations within ML models required simplifying animations.
/ Real-time capabilities were restricted by the speed of existing APIs.
Empathizing Through Research & Strategy
We conducted 15 structured discovery interviews and observed users through task analysis. We combined these primary insights with a competitive audit of 8 industry-leading tools to pinpoint exactly where our current experience was falling short. I conducted guerilla studies and used Affinity Mapping and Crazy 8s to rapidly prototype solutions.
Discovery interview sessions
“I do not really see the point of this app, everything is so scattered”
“What is this app supposed to do?”
“Nothing feels familiar & I’m not trusting this site with my photos”
Industry-leading tools audited
Our objective was to move beyond the "technical engine" and identify the emotional and functional barriers that would ultimately drive long-term customer adoption and engagement.
Define & Ideate
Our goal was to create a more intuitive and user-friendly experience that would help users understand the value of the product and encourage them to use it more often. We conducted user interviews and usability testing to identify pain points and areas for improvement. We also performed a competitive analysis to see how our product stacked up against other tools on the market.
User Journey
This helped us gather qualitative data on user emotions, and uncover how users feel at specific touchpoints, identify friction and delight points, and ultimately improved our understanding of user expectations.
Affinity Mapping
Affinity mapping helped us transform abstract user feedback and research notes into clear, actionable insights. By grouping and synthesizing observations from user interviews, we identified key themes and patterns that directly influenced our design decisions and product strategy.
Crazy 8s
This method helped us quickly generate a set of 8 ideas and explore diverse solutions to design challenges in a short amount of time.
Information Architecture
I organized content into task-based categories (AI Retouching, AI Editing, Batch Processing) and clarified workflows (Upload & Edit, Organize & Share) to create a clearer navigation structure.
Solution Prioritization
I prioritized features based on user needs, business impact, and technical effort. This helped us focus on the most important features and avoid feature creep that could cost development time and resources.
Design System
After ideating & countless meetings, I created a comprehensive design system in Figma to ensure consistency and scalability across the entire product. This system addressed the legacy issues of scattered UI patterns and provided a solid foundation for future development.
Design Board
Typography & Style Guide
Local Design Variables
24 Master Components
Input Fields
Buttons & Selection
Navigation
Redesigning the Experience
Here is a comprehensive side-by-side comparison of the original interface and our proposed redesign, highlighting the key improvements in user experience, visual clarity, and overall usability.
Before: Hero Section
After: Redesigned Hero
Landing Page
The original landing page conveyed professionalism but lacked a clear value proposition and visual hierarchy. Our redesign focuses on establishing immediate trust through a modern, clean interface, showcasing the product's capabilities more effectively, and guiding users toward conversion with improved calls to action and visual storytelling.
After: First Section
After: Footer
Before: Login
After: Signup Flow
Authentication
The original authentication flow was functional but lacked modern design standards and user guidance. Our redesign streamlines the process with a clear, step-by-step signup wizard, incorporates visual feedback and validation, and introduces a more trustworthy and professional interface that builds user confidence from the very first interaction.
Before: Upload
After: Upload Processing
Real-Time Visual Feedback
The original upload interface lacked visual feedback, leaving users uncertain about the upload status. Our redesign introduces instant previews and real-time progress indicators, addressing the "black box" anxiety identified in research. This ensures users stay informed throughout the AI processing cycle, building trust and reducing uncertainty.
Before: Dashboard
Before: Details
Before: Account
After: Dashboard Overview
After: Order Details
After: Dashboard Expanded
Calibrated AI Controls & Cross-Device Fluidity
The original dashboard was cluttered and difficult to navigate, making it hard for users to find the controls they needed. Our redesign streamlines the interface with intuitive "Smart Default" sliders, making professional-grade results accessible in one click. We also established a unified design system that ensures a frictionless editing experience from mobile to desktop, simplifying the legacy codebase.
Results & Impact
Our redesign supported a significant increase in platform usage, scaling from 4 million to 6 million images processed per month.
Premium Conversion
Improved visibility of advanced tools through progressive disclosure led to a direct positive impact on discovering paid capabilities.
Task Success
Achieved for standard editing workflows, representing a 25% improvement over the legacy platform.
Reduced Friction
By simplifying the ordering pipeline and adding real-time visual feedback, we reduced average task completion time.
User Satisfaction
Overall platform user satisfaction scores surged from 3.4/5 to a premium rating post-redesign, with a 40% boost in onboarding completion.