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Sonos Update and Yours Truly on the Design of AI Podcast
Tom Conrad, interim CEO of Sonos is making the rounds. I was recently featured on a design/AI podcast and discussed my AI tool shootout article.
Roger Wong
May 17, 2025
Four months into his role as interim CEO, Tom Conrad has been remarkably candid about Sonos’ catastrophic app launch. In recent interviews with WIRED and The Verge, he’s taken personal responsibility—even though he wasn’t at the helm, just on the board—acknowledged deep organizational problems, and outlined the company’s path forward.
Highlighted Links
 | In a recent episode of the Design of AI podcast, I discussed my comprehensive analysis of eight AI prompt-to-code tools. The hosts sum up my findings, saying this evaluation “shines a dark light on AI products and their maturity.” Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. |
 | Thinking about personas as characters from TV shows and movies and using screenwriting techniques is right up my alley. Laia Tremosa writes for the IxDF. |
 | Allen Pike: “While chat is powerful, for most products chatting with the underlying LLM should be more of a debug interface – a fallback mode – and not the primary UX.” |
What I’m Consuming
See LoveFrom’s new branding for one of the best bookstores in the U.S. Jony Ive’s LoveFrom gives iconic William Stout Architectural Books a refresh for its 50th anniversary. (Mark Wilson / Fast Company)
Interview with Amy Lokey, Chief Experience Officer at ServiceNow. Fascinating interview with ServiceNow’s CXO. She discusses how the company designs for clients like CVS and Stellantis at scale. (Eli Woolery / Design Better)
Did Apple get too big for its own good? With Daring Fireball’s John Gruber. Fun discussion about Apple’s latest legal issues and how much it has changed since Steve Jobs died. (Nilay Patel / The Verge)