Yeonhee Rho

Summary

Senior product designer with 15+ years of experience across Samsung, Amazon, and a founder-led startup. Specialized in AI-enabled consumer products, system-level UX, and cross-platform experiences from 0 → 1 to global scale. Known for simplifying complex technologies into intuitive, inclusive products used by millions worldwide.

Experience

Co-founder · Product and UX design, DNNR Tech

2024 – present · San Francisco Bay Area, CA

• Co-founded an AI-driven consumer product studio; own product strategy, UX, brand, store presence, content, and operations from ideation to launch, across 20+ apps live on iOS and Android.
• Led TJ Near & Hot, a community discovery app for Trader Joe's shoppers, from MVP to social engagement: 115K iOS installs in its best 12 months on organic search alone, 22K peak monthly active users (March 2026), App Store rating rebuilt from 1.9 to 4.4.
• Established founder-level design practice: rapid AI-assisted prototyping, UX writing, and continuous user feedback loops.
• Use generative AI tools (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Ideogram) to accelerate research, ideation, and iteration.

Product designer, Amazon

2022 – 2023

• Redesigned the first-time AR shopping experience, View in Your Room, in the Amazon Shopping app: onboarding reduced from 11 steps to 6.
• Refreshed the mobile design system across iOS and Android after the Sketch to Figma migration, for an app used by 150M+ customers.
• Partnered with product managers, researchers, and engineers to align system-level UX with customer and business needs.

Lead senior UX/UI designer, Samsung Electronics

2006 – 2022

• Led system-level UX and interaction design for global consumer products across mobile, wearable, TV, and VR.
• Defined design strategies and scalable interaction models under hardware and platform constraints; defined and documented the Tizen OS design system and designed its Gallery and Photo Editor.
• Designed the Gear VR setup and multi-device experience (13 steps to 5), contributing to 7M device sales in the first quarter after launch; two international patents filed.
• Mentored and led a team of designers while contributing as an individual designer on core systems.

Education

• MS, Technology Innovation (equivalent of HCI), University of Washington, Seattle, WA
• MS, Cognitive Science, Yonsei University, Seoul
• BE, Computer Science, Sogang University, Seoul

Awards and publications

• iF Design Award, Gold, 2012: XGEO GC80 digital X-ray medical device
• IEEE GHTC 2021: Demonstration of a low-cost EEG system providing communication for patients
• ACM PETRA 2021: Methods of identifying touched areas have been wiped properly

Patents (selected, 60+ citations)

• US9760239B2 / US9003324B2 / KR101469520B1: Control device and controlling method thereof (cited 61)
• US10311503B2 / WO2013187663A1 and family: User terminal device for providing an electronic shopping service (cited 29)
• US10157191B2 / WO2011021907A2 and family: Metadata tagging system, image searching method, device, and method for tagging gesture (cited 28)
• KR20140027029A and family: Apparatus and method for determining item based on interaction environment (cited 15)
• WO2019164092A1 / US20200410769A1 and family: Providing second content for first content according to movement of an external object
• WO2019103350A1 / US20200401213A1 and family: Adaptively configuring a user interface
• US20110193810A1: Touch-type display apparatus and screen division method (cited 8)
• WO2013103187A1 / US20130173622A1: System and method for providing keyword information
• KR20150046572A: Mobile communication terminal, battery cover, and payment method
• KR20130126019A: User terminal apparatus and control method thereof

Volunteer

• SimpleSteps: redesigned a career platform for immigrant women; active usage up 120%.