01
A Chat and Research mode toggle
Two modes in one composer. It sets expectations, decides when Lumen searches the web, and keeps a quick question from feeling as heavy as a real project.
All workSelf-initiated case study · AI SaaS
Lumen AI
An AI writing and research assistant that cites its sources and keeps your work in one place.
- 14screens
- 63design tokens
- 49components
- 18icons
/The problem
AI chat tools got good at answering. They stayed bad at being a place to work. Answers come with no sources, good work disappears in an endless list of chats, and a quick question looks the same as a real research project.
/My approach
I designed around two people who are accountable for what they produce: a product researcher who needs answers she can check, and a founder who writes a lot and reuses what works. That led to four rules for every screen: earn trust by default, separate a question from a project, never lose the work, and stay calm.
The structure follows those rules. Chats, documents and uploads live together in a Workspace with folders. A prompt library keeps the prompts people retype every day. Settings cover model choice, usage and billing, connections and data controls.
Each screen has one accent element: the send button is the only accent-filled control, so the next step is never in doubt.
/Who uses it
Two people who own their output
Sara · product researcher
“Can I trust this answer enough to share it?”
Bilal · founder who writes a lot
“Why do I retype the same prompts every day?”
/Key decisions
Three decisions that shaped it
02
Sources as a panel, not a footnote
Citations sit inline, with a sources panel one click away. Checking a claim feels built in, not bolted on, because trust is the whole job.
03
Never lose the work
Chats, documents and uploads live together in a Workspace with folders, instead of one endless scroll of old chats.
/Screens
A look inside
Prompt library, model settings, usage and billing, and the upgrade flow. 14 screens, each in Light and Dark.
/Design system
Built on one system
63 tokens across Light and Dark, 11 text styles in Inter and JetBrains Mono, 49 components and 18 icons.
/What I'd do next
Lumen AI is a concept, so it hasn't been tested with real teams yet. Next come mobile layouts, shared team workspaces and real-time collaboration on documents, once the single-user product feels solid.
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