Project Background
SoukAI was an AI-powered B2B platform designed to connect buyers and sellers in the global energy sector, streamlining a traditionally archaic, paper-heavy supply chain. In an industry running on legacy systems and handshake deals, my challenge was to build a digital ecosystem that felt as trustworthy as a face-to-face meeting.
Role, duration and tools
The Role
Founding Designer (Product Design and Creative)
Duration
Ongoing
Tools
Figma, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Premiere Pro, Jitter.video, Slack, Miro
Design Process
Discover
Brand strategy,
The problem,
Existing experience
Define
Persona,
Opportunities,
User stories,
Task flow
Develop
UI inspiration,
Sketches,
Wireframes
Deliver
Marketing site,
MVP,
Marketing Collateral
The Challenge: Entering "Alien" Territory
The "Outsider" Advantage
Entering this project, the Oil & Gas landscape was completely alien to me. How can I digitalise a process while not knowing how the existing traditional ins-and-outs work on paper. I had to turn this unfamiliarity into an asset. Lacking industry bias allowed me to question the status quo and view the "complex" process through a lens of simplification.
Discover: Immersion & Strategy
I ran parallel discovery tracks to understand both the Market Landscape and the User Psychology.
Brand & Market Strategy
I sat with the founders, Shoaib and Abdurrahman, to dissect the landscape and understand the visual semiotics of the industry. It was mainly dominated by heavy, dated industrial imagery. We needed a brand that felt established yet modern, striking a balance between "Silicon Valley Tech" and the "Industrial Reliability our users are comfortable with.
Discussing SoukAI as a brand with the co-founders
Visuals from the existing O&G market – corporate and industrial imagery; sans-serif, light typography (mostly); simple logos (with a lot of symmetry) and sans-serif wordmarks; Chevron and Aramco's visual identity looked the most visually consistent and engaging.
The Problem
From the product perspective, we discussed in depth the problems in the O&G space. After speaking to brokers and key stakeholders in the industry, Shoaib and Abdurrahman noticed a pattern of pains: the process was too long, there's a huge amount of paperwork, and there is an increasing risk of fraud. They made it clear that buying and selling in the energy sector is archaic. It is fragmented, slow, and heavily reliant on intermediaries.
Long, fragmented process
Oil and gas deals can take a long time to complete: New business deals in the oil and gas sector typically take 6–18+ months to close, due to complex decision-making, regulatory requirements, and multi-stakeholder approvals (Optimum7)
Huge number of documents
A huge amount of documentation makes tracking and handling more difficult and inefficient: Multiple documents are required at every stage, from early-stage transaction documents, due diligence and legal, contractual agreements, trade documents and regulatory documentation.
Fraud Risk
This complex process opens the doors to fraud: Oil and gas trading is plagued by fraud and forged documents, with lengthy, opaque processes eroding trust between buyers and sellers. Without fast, reliable verification, legitimate deals face delays, disputes, and lost opportunities.
Mapping the Current Friction
To fully grasp this complexity, I mapped out the existing, traditional offline process for an oil deal. It was a labyrinth of documentation, email chains, and manual verification steps.
