Brian Lin, Sr. Product Design Manager, Discord

Brian Lin is a design leader based in Toronto who has spent more than twenty years helping teams create things people genuinely want to use. He’s currently at Discord, where he leads a team of designers focused on the parts of the product people use most, like chat and voice, and integrates AI in ways that help people connect without getting in the way.

Before Discord, Brian spent four years as a Design Director at HelloFresh, leading design for the company’s growth efforts. He helped shape how his teams worked with AI day-to-day, turning early experiments into shared practices for prototyping and testing ideas cross-functionally. He also helped teams determine what “good enough to ship” should mean while ensuring speed never came at the cost of quality or clear ownership.

Brian has worked at large companies, small agencies, and fast-growing startups. Across them, he’s learned that good work depends on people understanding what they’re responsible for. In recent years, he’s been exploring the same questions about AI, ownership, and quality that many design leaders face today.

Ownership and Quality When Anyone Can Build Anything

Ever felt like you’re supposed to have an AI strategy while still figuring out what’s actually working? Or watched someone generate a screen in seconds and wondered who now owns the thinking behind it? You’re not alone. In this honest and interactive kickoff, Brian Lin opens up the questions design leaders are often expected to answer, but rarely get space to discuss.

You’ll compare notes with peers, debate where responsibility sits across design, product and engineering, and start defining what good looks like when anyone can make something that looks finished.

Expect candid conversation, practical examples and a few uncomfortable questions—all aimed at making ownership clearer and setting a quality bar your team can stand behind.