UX Soup

Episódios

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  Spilt Soup: Boeing 11.08.2026 27min

  In the latest version of our Spilt Soup series exploring the human factors behind product failures, we examine the issues with Boeing’s 737 MAX airplanes. In the 2010s Boeing installed a feature meant to help pilots during mid-air stalls… but instead the feature allegedly contributed to confusion, crashes, and loss of life. How could this happen at a safety-driven company? And what UX lessons could be applied to products in other verticals, like medical or automotive?In Condensed Soup, we lighten the mood by sharing our tips for comfortable air travel.
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  Typography with Oliver Schöndorfer 14.07.2026 34min

  Typography is an often overlooked part of UX design, but can have a big impact on usability, trust, and accessibility. Oliver Schöndorfer runs the PimpMyType website and YouTube channel and is a font fanatic. We discuss key elements which factor into font choice and custom typefaces, the failures of Apple's Liquid Glass, the future of Volvo's Centum typeface, how well AI design tools choose fonts, and his favourite font for email.
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  The UX of Waiting in Transportation 30.06.2026 38min

  Three out of 3 podcast hosts agree: Waiting stinks! This week Chris, Lisa, and Derek discuss the “UX of Waiting” in transportation contexts like airports, taxi queues, train stations, and worst of all traffic jams. How can designers make active or passive waiting less anxiety-inducing for travelers? And in a fun Condensed Soup segment, the gang considers what they’d do if their phone dies while waiting to continue a journey.
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  AI in Health Care with Dr. Santosh Basapur 16.06.2026 36min

  Friend of the podcast Dr. Santosh Basapur returns for a third time! On this episode, Dr. Basapur shares his thoughts on AI's impact on health care service design, including possible improvements in patient care, and the new challenges AI could introduce.
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  First Responders and Robotaxis with Chris Dodge 02.06.2026 51min

  As robotaxis flood public roads, many groups continue to voice safety concerns. One ongoing challenge relates to how driverless cars interact with fire engines, ambulances, and law enforcement. In this special episode, Derek and Chris put on their “researcher hats” to moderate an interview / participatory design session with Christopher Dodge (a firefighter, EMT, and former UX researcher!) on best practices for robotaxis and first responders.
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  Pedestrian Safety with Dr. Austin Angulo 19.05.2026 39min

  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in the US more than 7000 pedestrians are killed each year and more than 71000 injured. According to the World Health Organisation, pedestrians represent over 20% of all road traffic deaths. In this episode we talk pedestrian (and cyclist) safety with Dr. Austin Angulo from the Transportation Research and Visualization Laboratory at the University at Buffalo. We discuss Dr. Angulo's research on vehicle-pedestrian communication and testing pedestrian and cyclist safety in virtual reality.
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  Digital Transformation 07.04.2026 31min

  Like any UX or human factors research project, “digital transformation” (the integration/evolution of new tech to parts of a business) requires a strategic, human-centered approach. In this episode, we explore approaches for digital transformation, and the importance of change management during the process. We also discuss how the AI bubble has affected the field.In Condensed Soup, we share stories of “change management gone wrong.”
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  Spilt Soup: Sonos 24.03.2026 26min

  In this installment of our Spilt Soup series, exploring the reasons behind product and service failures, we review the spectacular faceplant of Sonos. In 2024 Sonos pushed a "courageous" (not our word) app update that broke several core features, not to mention its users' trust. We analyze how Sonos lost $600 million in market cap overnight, and what product teams can learn from this failure.In Condensed Soup, we cleanse our palette by sharing stories of app updates done right.
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  Tesla / Robots 10.03.2026 31min

  Tesla recently announced its intention to sunset manufacturing of its Model S and Model X cars, in favor of... robots? On this episode Lisa, Chris, and Derek break down the "why's" behind this decision, and the effects it could have on Tesla's legacy. In our Condensed Soup segment, the team discusses what we're naming our first humanoid robot, and where we're storing them in our homes.
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  How to Make AI Useful with MIT's Bryan Reimer 27.01.2026 34min

  Bryan Reimer, Ph.D., is a Research Scientist in the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics and co-author of the book "How to Make AI Useful: Moving Beyond the Hype to Real Progress in Business, Society and Life." Bryan discusses AI's current trajectory, its impact on transportation, jobs, creativity, and other areas of life. He discusses how to harness AI as a useful tool to fully realise AI's potential in a safe manner.
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  CES 2026: Automotive UX Recap 15.01.2026 27min

  Every year the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas provides a glimpse into the strategies of automakers and suppliers. Derek walked the show floor to assess where the automotive world is headed. Join us as we discuss AI, new in-cabin experiences, Derek's robotaxi ride, and what was missing from this year's show. In Condensed Soup, Chris and Derek share their personal CES hacks.
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  Fitness Tech 07.01.2026 24min

  Happy New Year! The stereotypical New Year's resolution is to work off all the weight gained over the holiday season, so in this first episode of 2026 it seemed appropriate to revisit the UX of fitness tech. We covered this topic back during the pandemic, so we look at how things have changed since then and where it still falls short. In Condensed Soup, we share our favourite sporting/fitness accomplishments.
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  Gaming 16.12.2025 28min

  As the holidays are upon us, it seems fitting to talk about one of the popular presents young people especially will be asking for: games. Join us on the last episode for 2025 as we discuss how UX research for gaming differs from other industries, how gaming UX has changed over the years, future trends, and most importantly, what games we are all playing at the moment.
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  Virtual Realities and Holograms with Prof. Gary Burnett 25.11.2025 1h 14min

  In this extended episode of UX Soup, we talk with Professor Gary Burnett from Loughborough University, who is a pioneer in the use of immersive technology, especially social virtual reality, as a means to engage and teach Higher Education students in new and meaningful ways. We talk with Gary about two recently published research articles: one on hologram teachers and the other on utilising virtual worlds for team-building exercises.
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  Spilt Soup: Quibi 21.10.2025 36min

  The first instalment of Spilt Soup, which breaks down UX reasons for spectacular product and service failures. Where better to start than Quibi? In 2020 Quibi was launched with massive financial backing as a streaming service to compete with Netflix and other video streaming platforms. But after only 8 months it was gone. We analyse what went wrong from a UX perspective and lessons that can be learned.In Condensed Soup we discuss our biggest UX research wins.
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  The Safety of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems 30.09.2025 29min

  A recent study out of Dongchedi in China evaluated how effectively 36 cars handled 15 obstacles in both highway and urban settings. We discuss the results of the study, the strengths and weaknesses of it, and what it means for safety and human factors in the design of these systems. In Condensed Soup, we share our most proudest or most memorable research findings.
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  Fake People 16.09.2025 35min

  In this episode, we discuss fake people. No, not people who pretend to be somebody they're not, but true fake people and their potential use in UX research. AI-powered participants? AI researchers? There are companies creating these fake participants for usage in product and market research, and we discuss the pros and cons. Then we contemplate other use cases for fake people, and Oprah and ABBA become involved. In Condensed Soup, we tell the one thing we would want our own fake double to carry out.
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  Data Privacy in Connected Cars 02.09.2025 27min

  We are all aware of issues with data privacy on the internet and on your mobile devices, but how aware are you about the data being collected from your car? We discuss how this data is different from that of your other connected devices and how well automakers are protecting your data. We review a benchmarking report from Privacy4Cars which evaluates how effectively automakers honor your privacy rights.
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  UX of Personalised Nutrition with Zoe 19.08.2025 36min

  Zoe is a personalized nutrition program which uses at-home tests and blood sugar monitoring to help users understand how their body responds to food and provide personalized dietary recommendations. Chris and Derek interview Lisa about her positive and negative experiences with Zoe, and what she would change for future releases. In Condensed Soup, we discuss our favourite recent health care tech.
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  The Decline of the User Interface 05.08.2025 38min

  In this episode, we discuss an opinion piece written by Nick Hodges lamenting the decline of the user interface, providing our analysis of the main points regarding where UI has gone wrong and how we can fix it. In Condensed Soup, we discuss the most misused UX research phrases.