Sajani Lokuge: From UX to AI, an Exemplary Journey

Sajani Lokuge, at just 26 years old, has made a remarkable career transition from UX design to a communications role in artificial intelligence (AI). Based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, she now leverages her technical experience to make AI accessible to a broader audience at an industrial AI software company. Her identity and employment have been verified by Business Insider, confirming the authenticity of her journey.

Lokuge began her career as a UX designer after studying software engineering. She climbed the ranks to become a lead UX designer, a position that prepared her for her current role as the AI content manager. She worked in a highly technical role related to product creation before transitioning to AI communications. This career change took place about ten months ago when her company recognized the need to effectively communicate their AI products to diverse audiences.

A Career Built on Communication

With a significant presence on LinkedIn, where she has around 26,000 followers, Lokuge has positioned herself as an expert in AI communications. She hosts podcasts and company meetings, translating complex technical concepts into messages that are understandable to all. Her work involves developing content strategies and moderating global AI meetings, broadcast monthly to all employees of the company. She also produces and hosts a video podcast series titled "Voices of Industry," where she discusses with leaders from various fields how they are adopting industrial AI.

Some weeks, she focuses on video production, which involves a lot of travel. Other weeks, she concentrates more on strategic communication or sales enablement, showcasing the diversity of her skills and responsibilities.

Transferable Skills from UX Design to AI

The skills acquired in UX design have proven invaluable in her new role. Understanding user needs and the obstacles they face is essential for effectively communicating about AI. Lokuge uses this empathy to anticipate the questions and concerns of her audience, striving to make AI accessible to those who are not familiar with technical jargon.

Continuous Learning

Lokuge had to develop her technical fluency to succeed in her new position. She spent the first few months integrating with product teams, attending their meetings, and asking questions to better understand AI products. Most of her skill development was structured around the work itself, allowing her to translate complex concepts into simple terms for her audience. Even before the role existed, she had already been publicly writing about careers in design and AI for months. By the time the role was being created, the leadership team already had an idea of her thinking style, the type of work she produced, and her strengths.

Advice for Aspiring Career Changers

Lokuge encourages those looking to follow a similar path not to wait until they feel perfectly ready. She emphasizes that design skills are largely transferable to roles in AI communications, and that learning often happens along the way. She also advises against settling for certifications alone, but rather to produce content that demonstrates an ability to explain AI to a lay audience.

She was very comfortable and happy in her previous role as a lead UX designer and was not actively looking to leave. However, when the opportunity arose, she did not hesitate to seize it. My advice for designers in particular is to not view your portfolio as a static record of past projects, but rather as a living collection of public work. By sharing her thoughts and work publicly, Lokuge was able to stand out and seize the opportunity for this new role as soon as it was created.