I’m David Cruz, a Senior Product Designer (Gen AI) with 15+ years of experience shipping digital products across Fintech, Web3, Insurtech, and creative agencies. I love translating complex requirements into clear, intuitive interfaces—while staying grounded in what businesses need to achieve and what engineering can reliably build.

David Cruz

I’m David Cruz, a Senior Product Designer (Gen AI) with 15+ years of experience shipping digital products across Fintech, Web3, Insurtech, and creative agencies. I love translating complex requirements into clear, intuitive interfaces—while staying grounded in what businesses need to achieve and what engineering can reliably build.

Available to hire

I’m David Cruz, a Senior Product Designer (Gen AI) with 15+ years of experience shipping digital products across Fintech, Web3, Insurtech, and creative agencies. I love translating complex requirements into clear, intuitive interfaces—while staying grounded in what businesses need to achieve and what engineering can reliably build.

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Language

English
Fluent
Portuguese
Fluent

Work Experience

Senior Product Designer - Infinum at Infinum
September 1, 2025 - March 1, 2026
End-to-end design delivery for a retail EPO S product. Owned the full product lifecycle from conceptualising user-centric features to building scalable design systems that ensured long-term visual consistency and reduced technical ambiguity.
Senior Product Designer at Infinum
September 1, 2025 - March 1, 2026
End-to-end design delivery for a retail Epos product. Responsible for the full product lifecycle, from concepting user-centric features to scalable design systems that ensure long-term visual consistency and reduce technical guessing.
Senior UI Designer at Infinum
September 1, 2025 - January 31, 2026
Delivered high-fidelity UI solutions for complex projects in Healthcare and Retail. Focused on crafting new user-centric features and managing design systems to ensure long-term scalability and visual excellence.
Senior Product Designer - Zharta at Zharta
September 1, 2024 - September 1, 2025
Led end-to-end rebranding implementation and evolved the design system for a sophisticated Web3 lending protocol. Simplified complex blockchain interactions into a seamless user experience for the NFT market.
Senior Product Designer at Zharta
September 1, 2024 - September 1, 2025
Led end-to-end rebranding and the evolution of the Design System, simplifying complex blockchain interactions into a seamless NFT market user experience.
Senior UI Designer at Zharta
September 1, 2024 - September 30, 2025
Played a key role in a blockchain-based NFT lending protocol. Spearheaded the end-to-end rebranding implementation across the platform, evolved the core design system, and designed user-centric features to simplify complex Web3 interactions.
Founding Designer at Helvengo
February 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024
As Founding Designer, I established the entire UX/UI framework and built the scalable Design System foundations for a data-led insurance platform, ensuring a seamless transition from concept to product launch.
Senior UI Designer at Infinum
August 1, 2022 - December 31, 2022
UI design work and design system maintenance for a big client in the heavy industry world.
Founding Product Designer at Helvengo
January 1, 2022 - July 1, 2024
Built the product from 0 to launch—designed the UX/UI foundations and a scalable Design System for a data-led Insurtech platform, transforming complex B2B insurance processes into an intuitive digital product.
Senior UI Designer at Deloitte Digital
September 1, 2021 - May 31, 2022
Collaborated with a multidisciplinary team to design and refine a large-scale insurance product for a major UK client, ensuring high-fidelity UI delivery and adherence to complex business requirements.
Lead UI Designer at Havas PT
February 1, 2021 - December 1, 2021
Led UI design and delivered the Design System for Compal's 'Pomar de Prémios' loyalty app (iOS & Android). Produced a fully brand-aligned component library of 40+ elements, covering all key screens for a consumer-facing mobile product.
Senior UI Designer at Havas PT
February 1, 2021 - August 31, 2022
Led the UI design and developed the Design System for the 'Pomar de Prémios' mobile app (iOS & Android) for Compal. Focused on creating an engaging visual experience aligned with the brand's identity.
Senior UX/UI Designer at LM IT
September 1, 2020 - October 31, 2020
Spearheaded the redesign of the Wise Box admin interface, focusing on optimizing complex workflows and enhancing user efficiency through a modernized UI.
Founding Designer at Bou Market
September 1, 2020 - January 31, 2021
Strategized and designed the end-to-end UX/UI of a greenfield marketplace platform from scratch, empowering local businesses with a robust and intuitive digital ecosystem.
Design Lead at NOVA (Innovation Lab)
July 1, 2020 - October 31, 2020
Design Lead at NOVA's Innovation Lab, spearheading the UX/UI development for three distinct MVPs. Focused on rapid prototyping and user validation to move products from concept to initial market launch.
Senior UX/UI Designer at AKT Creative Innovation
June 1, 2020 - October 31, 2020
Designed the UX/UI for Super Bock's 'Menu Autêntico' app, focusing on creating an engaging mobile experience that bridged the gap between the brand and its hospitality partners.
Senior UX/UI Designer at Singular
January 1, 2020 - June 30, 2020
Strategized and designed a custom CRM platform from the ground up for a major private banking institution. Focused on simplifying complex banking workflows and creating a robust interface for internal employees.
Senior UX/UI Designer at COMON
May 1, 2019 - July 31, 2019
Owned the end-to-end UX/UI design for Fidelidade Seguros' Auto Insurance Simulator. Delivered a responsive solution (Desktop & Mobile) that simplified the quote-to-purchase journey for one of Portugal's leading insurers.
Lead UI Designer at Thin Martian
October 1, 2015 - December 1, 2019
Led design delivery for enterprise digital products across BBC, British Airways, and British Library. Managed cross-functional design and development workflows, and specialised in complex B2B/B2C platforms for the finance and insurance sectors; mentored junior designers and streamlined design-to-dev handoff processes.
Lead UX/UI Designer at Thin Martian
October 1, 2015 - April 30, 2019
Led the design team in delivering high-tier digital products for global brands, including BBC, British Airways, and the British Library. Streamlined cross-functional collaboration between designers and developers and specialised in complex B2B/B2C platforms for the finance and insurance sectors.
Product Designer at Possible
February 1, 2015 - September 1, 2015
Senior Digital Designer at POSSIBLE, delivering high-end digital experiences for Canon, Lacoste, Vodafone, and Nestlé. Led the full redesign of the Canon Irista platform and drove major digital campaigns—combining product thinking with strategic marketing execution.
Senior Digital Designer at Possible
January 1, 2015 - September 30, 2015
Senior Digital Designer for POSSIBLE, delivering high-end digital experiences for world-class brands including Canon, Lacoste, Vodafone, and Nestlé. Led the redesign of the Canon Irista platform and spearheaded major digital campaigns, blending product design with strategic marketing.
Senior Digital Designer at NO SSA
December 1, 2011 - January 1, 2015
Digital Art Director who founded and scaled the digital department at one of Portugal’s most awarded agencies. Defined end-to-end workflows for web/app production, social media, and cross-channel campaigns; grew the department from the ground up.
Senior Digital Designer at NOSSA
December 1, 2011 - January 1, 2015
Digital Art Director who founded and scaled the digital department at one of Portugal's most awarded creative agencies. Defined end-to-end workflows for web and app production, social media, and cross-channel campaigns.
Digital Art Director at Nossa
October 1, 2010 - December 31, 2015
Digital Art Director responsible for pioneering the digital department within one of Portugal's most awarded creative agencies. Established the digital workflow for website and app development, social media strategy, and integrated cross-channel campaigns.
Digital Designer at Fullsix Portugal
October 1, 2009 - December 31, 2011
Began my career at Fullsix, Portugal's leading digital agency at the time, rapidly progressing from Junior to Senior Designer. Collaborated with top-tier national and international clients, mastering the fundamentals of digital design and creative strategy under the mentorship of industry leaders.

Education

Master’s in Comunication Design at Faculdade de Belas Artes
January 1, 2003 - December 31, 2008
Master’s in Communication Design at Faculdade de Belas Artes
January 1, 2003 - January 1, 2008
Master’s in Design with Gen AI at Lisbon, PT
January 1, 2026 - January 1, 2026
Master’s in Communication Design at Faculdade de Belas Artes
January 1, 2003 - January 1, 2008

Qualifications

Master's degree in Design with Gen AI
January 1, 2026 - January 1, 2026

Industry Experience

Healthcare, Financial Services, Software & Internet, Media & Entertainment, Retail, Professional Services, Other