Vibe Coding, Meet UX
A talk with Marié Whittington, Founder and Creative Director at Pepperplane.
We will talk about how to Build fast. Design thoughtfully. UX principles applied live as we create an app in Claude.
About this lesson
AI can build an app in minutes. It can’t tell you who it’s for.
When you prompt, the AI quietly makes every decision a UX designer would normally think through: who the user is, what they’re trying to do, what goes on each screen and what happens when things go wrong. Without direction, it falls back on the average. That’s why so many AI-built apps look and work the same, and why so many get abandoned after the first try.
In this live session, Marié Whittington, founder of the UX/UI agency Pepperplane, shows how to put your UX designer cap on while you build. Starting from a one-line prompt, we’ll build a real app live in Claude and improve it step by step using five principles designers rely on. You’ll see each change happen, and why it matters.
What you’ll learn
How to steer AI away from generic output by prompting for a specific user, their problem and the flow they follow
How to design for the empty states, errors and scenarios that AI skips
How to keep your app simple, with design rules you set once in Claude so every screen follows them
Why a 5-minute test with one real user beats an hour of prompting
Who it’s for
Founders, operators and builders who create with AI and want their apps to be used, not just demoed. No design background needed.
You’ll leave knowing the questions to ask before you prompt, so what you build feels made for your users, not for everyone.
The Hosts
About Marié: With over 16 years in the design industry, she has built a career fueled by a passion for creating intuitive, impactful digital experiences. Originally from South Africa and now based in North Carolina, USA, she's constantly exploring how design, tech, and human interactions intersect to shape the world around us.
She does this through Pepperplane, the company I founded 9 years ago, where they craft user-centered solutions that drive meaningful impact. She's energized by the ever-evolving design landscape and always open to connecting with others who share this curiosity.
Happy Operators is a Barcelona-based studio that helps non-technical teams put AI and automation to work. Founded by Rafa Romero and Matt Roberts, it runs cohort courses on Maven, hands-on workshops in Barcelona, and bootcamps for companies that want their teams building with Claude rather than just chatting with it. Sessions like this one are free and practical: one real use case, built in front of you.
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Looking forward to see you there!