Infinity: designing an intelligent electric vehicle platform
Infinity
Designing an intelligent electric vehicle platform from early concept to market launch
UI, UX, Strategy, Innovation
Introduction
Infinity learns from how you actually drive and charge your electric vehicle (EV) to recommend the best charging spots for your specific needs. No more guesswork. No more range anxiety.
After the MVP launch amassed 8,000 downloads with 500 active users, I am now improving the product based on user feedback and real-world data. I led the design process for both the initial MVP and this enhanced iteration, focusing on refined user experiences, advanced personalisation features, and optimised charging recommendations.
Year
2025
My Role
Product Designer
Status
Live
Android Auto
Overview
Building confidence in EV travel would be challenging
The UK now has over 63,000 public charge points across 25,000 locations, with major networks like Tesla Supercharger, Gridserve, and BP Pulse expanding rapidly. 99% of UK postcodes are within 25 miles of rapid charging. Yet despite this infrastructure boom, drivers still feel uncertain about charging decisions. The problem is not availability. It is knowing which charger suits their specific journey.
The Challenge
How might we help EV drivers make confident charging decisions without information overload?
Research
What we learned from sitting in car parks with anxious drivers.
I conducted 22 in-depth interviews over six weeks with EV drivers across the UK. Participants were recruited through EV owner groups, on-site station intercepts, and referrals to ensure a diverse mix of vehicles, locations, and experience levels. The sample included: 8 Tesla drivers, 6 BMW drivers and 8 others (Hyundai, Audi, Polestar, Mini). The ownership ranged from 3 months to over 4 years with a spread of urban, suburban, and rural drivers. The age ranged between 28-52, and a balanced gender mix.
What did I learn?
Current solutions fall short of what drivers actually need. My research revealed a clear gap: while existing platforms display charging locations, they lack the intelligence to support real decision-making. Drivers get shown where chargers are but not which one is the right choice based on their vehicle, route, or context.
Frequent Charging Failures
12 drivers had abandoned a charging stop in the past month due to the station being broken, busy, or incompatible.
New Route Anxiety
7 drivers said they felt most anxious when travelling somewhere new.
Multi-App Dependency
8 drivers said they regularly cross-checked multiple apps before committing to a charging stop.
These were exactly the gaps existing apps weren't closing, so I went and looked at what everyone else was actually doing.
03
Where current solutions go wrong
Existing charging apps are excellent at showing locations but fail at intelligent decision-making. Current solutions either lack real-time status, suffer from poor usability, or create information overload.
Key Insight
More data creates more confusion. Users need intelligent recommendations, not information overload.
Challenge
Most apps miss the intelligence layer of EV charging.
After identifying consistent pain points, I defined three core principles.
How we addressed key pain points
Three major friction points emerged that existing charging apps failed to address. Here's how I tackled each of them:
Frequent Charging Failure → Real-Time Intelligence
Drivers had abandoned charging stops due to station issues, so the app now shows live status and predicts availability from usage patterns.
New Route Anxiety → Smart Route Planning
Drivers felt anxious when travelling somewhere new. We integrated intelligent route planning that suggests optimal charging stops based on real journey data.
Multi-App Dependency → Unified Experience
Instead of juggling multiple apps, drivers get recommendations in a single interface with streamlined charging initiation, including built-in navigation.
Initial Ideation
Wireframe
To validate interface decisions and test how the three concepts would translate into actual user interactions, I created wireframes for the core charging selection flow, the highest-stakes decision point where users experienced the most anxiety and decision paralysis.
03
Concept development and implementation
The wireframing process revealed that user needs aren't static: the same person might want automation during stressful motorway charging but prefer manual control when exploring options nearer home.
Concept 1
Manual elements, for users who wanted control over specific decisions.
-
Map browsing with filters
-
Manual override options
Concept 2
Personalised profiling, for learning individual range anxiety thresholds and preferences
-
Anxiety threshold settings
-
Learning user patterns
Concept 3
In app navigation integration, providing charging options on route.
-
One-tap charging recommendations
-
Integrated route planning
The wireframing process revealed that rather than choosing one concept, combining elements from all three created a more robust solution.
Information architecture
Based on user research revealing decision paralysis and multi-app frustration, I organised the app structure to prioritise immediate charging needs while keeping advanced features accessible without adding cognitive overhead.
The structure was validated through internal card sorting exercises, confirming that key features could be logically grouped and located within this hierarchy.
Final Design
Atomic components
I designed and developed the complete atomic design system in Figma, building every component from basic atoms through complex molecules and organisms to create a fully cohesive brand system.
02
Final screens
The MVP is already live; onboarding and settings from the enhanced version have reached production through TestFlight, with the remaining features rolling out in stages.
Login, Sign Up
Progressive disclosure breaks account creation into manageable steps, reducing cognitive load.
Currently in Development
Click and Charge
One button instantly finds the most optimal charger, eliminating decision paralysis. Improved numbering system and clear visual hierarchy focus attention on the single required action.
Currently in Development
Settings
Organised layout that groups account, vehicle, and app settings into clear sections
Currently in Development
03
Impact
After 3 months in market with the MVP:
Adoption and Engagement
8000+ downloads.
22% monthly active user retention.
Average 32 charging sessions completed per week.
22% monthly active user retention.
Average 32 charging sessions completed per week.
Business Impact
We signed several UK charging networks as partners to widen coverage, and their interest, plus real users sticking around, was the clearest sign yet the product had found its market.
Retrospective
How has this project improved me as a designer?
Working on EV Infinity over two years reinforced the value of sustained user research and how behavioural insights develop through extended engagement with real user problems. The project demonstrated how complex challenges require patience and systematic iteration.
Embrace Technical Restraints
When we moved the app from native to React Native, it really taught me the importance of involving developers early. I learned how to design within real technical limits and what’s actually feasible.
Balance Feature Scope With Core Value
The research showed that what users say they want and what they actually do can be quite different. So instead of just trusting feedback, I learned to keep validating assumptions throughout, testing designs against real behaviour and usage data.
Defend Core Values Whilst Adapting
As the project evolved, scope and priorities changed, as they always do in startups. But I learned to hold on to the key design principles, like keeping things intelligent and effortless, while adapting the details based on new feedback or constraints.
Other Projects
Spotable
2026
A personal project between my brother and me, for our disabled cousin, helping him find accessible venues and routes.
Lyst
2026
Building onboarding experiences and design system foundations while introducing AI-assisted processes across the design workflow.
Bed Configurator
2024
Understanding how £100,000+ beds are sold online through photorealistic 3D configuration and material visualisation.
Archives
2021-CURRENT
A collection of design work, some made it to launch, others were experiments exploring ideas across industrial design, branding, packaging, and UX.