Beker is an independent freelance AI product designer whose unofficial title is 'the guy who keeps removing things from the screen until the product finally makes sense.' He entered DayTwo into the Indigo Design Award because he felt like it deserved more than just a placement in the app store. “I had nothing to lose,” Beker says. “The first thing I did after finding out I won was to show my oldest kid. He said, 'Nice, Dad,' and went back to his game. That seems like just the right level of excitement.”

Beker's win has already brought him new clients and opportunities, and he uses it in his portfolio and on his LinkedIn page. “My award also comes up early in conversations with new clients,” Beker says. 

He encourages up-and-coming designers to find someone who will give them a real project as soon as possible, especially one with actual users attached to it. Beker also emphasizes the benefit of working with people who know more than you do. “It’s the only school that ever worked on me,” he says. Beker is self-taught, and he credits learning on his own as the reason he is where he is today. “Without a degree, the only way forward is figuring out how everything works by yourself,” Beker says. “It became my biggest advantage.”

Beker starts each design by first understanding the goal and user. “I start wide, narrow down fast, and put a working version in front of real people as early as possible,” he says. Beker also states that most of the design happens after the first round of client feedback. In terms of balancing creativity and strategy, Beker allows the strategy to define the boundaries and creativity to flourish within them. “Without boundaries there is nothing to push against,” he says. Ultimately, the most important part of a design is how it feels to the user. “People don’t remember screens,” Beker says. “They remember whether they felt smart or stupid using the product.”

He also credits AI coding tools with improving his process. “AI has completely changed my workflow,” Beker says. “I have someone to ask any question to at any time of day, and I hand in things that work instead of pictures of them. What hasn't changed is my taste and decisions. AI generates options, I choose.”

When Beker isn’t designing, he’s indulging in his interests like gaming, electric guitar, traveling, fashion, and architecture. “I have three kids who keep me honest, too,” he says. He emphasizes that designers who are on the fence about submitting to competitions like Indigo Design should just enter. “Most people don’t submit their work because they’re sure they won’t win,” Beker says. “I thought so too.”