---
title: "About"
author: Dan Birman
url: https://dbirman.com/about
updated: 2026-11-09
summary: "I design how people work with AI agents: what they’re allowed to do, when they ask, and how they earn more room."
---

# About

I design how people work with AI agents: what they’re allowed to do, when they ask, and how they earn more room. I prototype in code.

I’m Head of Design at [Caplight](https://www.caplight.com), a data and trading platform for private markets, where I’m the only designer. Over twelve years I’ve designed tipping and navigation at Uber, AI legal research at Ruli, a virtual care platform at Vida Health, a credit card at Final, and the Backbone One controller, hardware and software both. I trained as an industrial designer at RISD, and I still think about products as things you hold, even when they’re made of software.

## Talks

I speak about designing AI that people can hand real decisions to.

- **Trust is structural.** Why trust in AI products comes from limits, receipts, and undo, not from friendly copy. Examples from Uber, legal AI, and private markets.
- **Interrupt on drift, not on danger.** Why approval prompts stopped working, and what to interrupt for instead. Six patterns for AI agents that act on people’s behalf.
- **From controllers to agents.** What industrial design teaches about AI. Physical products earn trust through feel and feedback, and software agents can too.

For events and podcasts: [hi@dbirman.com](mailto:hi@dbirman.com). [Download a photo](https://dbirman.com/Dan_Birman_photo.jpg).

## Bio

Dan Birman designs how people work with AI agents: what they’re allowed to do, when they ask, and how they earn more room. He is Head of Design at Caplight and previously led design for tipping at Uber, AI legal research at Ruli, Vida Health’s care platform, and the Backbone One controller. He studied industrial design at RISD.

## History

- 2026–now**Caplight**, Head of Design
- 2026–now**Yazumi**, Co-founder
- 2023–now**Fora Studio**, Founder
- 2024**Ruli**, Design Lead, fractional
- 2022–23**Vida Health**, Senior Director of Design
- 2019–22**Backbone**, Head of Design
- 2018–19**Kyokan**, Head of Design
- 2015–18**Uber**, Product Design Lead
- 2015**Final**, Head of Design
- **RISD**, BFA, Industrial Design

Clients through Fora Studio and earlier consulting include Nike, Patagonia, NASA, Logitech, New Relic, Rollbar, Protocol Labs, MetaMask, and Othersphere.

## Contact

Email
:   [hi@dbirman.com](mailto:hi@dbirman.com)

LinkedIn
:   [linkedin.com/in/danbirman](https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbirman/)

GitHub
:   [github.com/danbirman](https://github.com/danbirman)

Résumé
:   [Download (PDF)](https://dbirman.com/Dan_Birman_Resume.pdf)