# Workmate

Canonical page: https://www.gabrielvaldivia.com/work/workmate

> Your AI Executive Assistant

- Date: 2023 — 2025
- Client: Workmate
- Services: Product Design, Branding, Design Systems, Pitch Decks

## Overview

Workmate's CEO and Founder reached out when the product was just an idea in his head. He needed a designer to partner with and bring it to life. Together, we worked on the initial prototype which helped raise a $10M seed round and several iterations of the product. We used design to accelerate his thinking, validate assumptions, and pivot quickly as it evolved in the early days.

## Team

- Will Ruben — Founder
- David Lobo — Operations
- Arek Kajda — Animation
- Daniel Chung — Design
- Matthew Baltzelle — Design

## Case study

[Visual: Workmate hero](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/OcvIAJ6AOB0wUsWtTU0tb1och3A.avif)

## Early explorations

Through the early days of Workmate, we explored many ways of using prompt engineering to configure AI teammates. I explored node-based interactions as well as cascading conditional statements revealed through progressive disclosure.

[Visual: Node-based prompting.](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/KWQWmVvzZYZcJOaFWasXiTeHoc.avif)

[Video: Skills that can be toggled on/off and edited through simple and advanced controls.](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/RggmZQatWh4D0bRkw11YDrU.mp4)

[Video: AI teammates that come with skills you can configure.](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/0CWwy0Ao7GxUVVdPO8EvDbubJxM.mp4)

[Video: Workmate 3](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/g60Ud3omXelGL0zjsGsPJfoHc4.mp4)

[Video: Workmate 4](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/JER4BeyLjHzHdsc1eY6LTq6FU.mp4)

## Initial prototype

Workmate's initial focus was to use AI to supercharge productivity at work through embodied AI teammates. Unlike other competitors, workmates had their own email and could follow you around in the tools you already use every day. The following are some explorations  of the initial prototype we used to raise the first round of funding.

[Visual: A dashboard to catch you up on what needs your attention across email, Slack, and other channels.](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/uL4AbhJ4jWgCc58sP7VKUz2u4o.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 5](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/FbHJK4cwL1yBjkuidyU6jqH0.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 6](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/mYFvDbDMxrZWJP5qaaBJlqsDeA.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 7](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/DwKKSHURhCWQIv0LeAyqeunSHJA.avif)

## Design System

Workmate's initial brand explorations relied on a simple Design System made of a couple dozen reusable components paired with a friendly character we lovingly referred to as Cappy.

[Visual: Workmate 7](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/BIzLuIgJPRQvpXpiIUjUckkMs.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 8](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/hIUEtqbAPzTNvWKHHoSa9aTVNg.avif)

## Character Design

Early on in the development of Workmate, we decided to focus on a mascot to represent the AI, in order to make it approachable and to support future voice and video interactions. We paired up with [Arek Kajda](https://www.kajdax.de/) to develop a friendly character we lovingly referred to as Cappy.

[Visual: Workmate 9](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/dJXHcYpgo1uAezE7fe8tvHa8LFY.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 10](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/uNhRjS0EQO572MYeg9gwMFp5Ss.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 11](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/WzSF7F6WFISPfsftltHwORx2wj8.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 12](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/ZQYdCaiq1ddN3aY75yve7duDyE.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 13](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/3UWi7WfFmRi9HohwJOCAaqK2nA0.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 14](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/I8JP4lpVaESb8NNR48MdPG8SqsY.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 15](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/NI8NGNlBVDluTTzEaYjg2hmtHNo.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 16](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/zqylOwtR7xyv9gkERz9tkIM.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 17](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/oyzeh6THlm5uPZUx9VKJbHtIM2c.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 18](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/jjqgTnyqwNCLkvGBo45ds88rFU.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 19](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/7JTVupQ4S097W6fySVfrL5z0KE.avif)

[Visual: Workmate 20](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/uu2t4TONOCFNJHTeyAyicD9n74.avif)

## Website

Once we arrived at an initial prototype of a product and accompanying brand, I designed and built a landing page to describe the product's features in simple terms.

[Visual: Workmate 21](https://pub-0c00865d02c1476494008dbb74525b2a.r2.dev/X8scsxWIJUi93fiNnaugULzIsxs.avif)

## Attribution

Credits and collaborators are listed as provided on the canonical case study. This page does not claim that Gabriel was the sole creator of the project.