Sidhya Tikku believes that when it comes to design, function is always greater than form. “If it works, it’s great. If it doesn’t, it will fail,” he says. “Nobody will use your project if it isn’t usable, no matter how beautiful it looks. Listening to your users and iterating based on their feedback is essential to creating a design that truly works.”

Tikku is a lead product designer and founder and CEO of his future startup, with a host of youthful ambitions that eventually crystallized into a career in design. “My childhood desires ranged from being an AC repair foreman to being in a band,” he says. “Back in middle school, I began experimenting with Photoshop, making odd shapes and photo morphs just out of curiosity. That playful exploration sparked a deeper desire to pursue creativity more seriously, ultimately leading me to apply to design schools around the world.”

He’s inspired by the works of Piet Mondrian and Barnett Newman. “Every time I’m at the MoMA, I look at their art for quite some time, even though some people would argue they’re just lines and shapes. There’s beauty in simplicity,” Tikku says. His streamlined design approach starts with defining the objective, then ideating, creating, iterating, and finally improving, with the brainstorming and ideation phases being foundational to the process. “I love to sit down and think about what’s working and what’s not working,” Tikku says.