Crunched (YC-backed 25) - Lead Designer

Crunched · Møllergata 6, OSLO

<h1>Crunched - Lead Designer (Oslo)</h1> Location: Oslo, Norway Type: Full-time, on-site <h2>Design how professionals think with AI the world's most advanced AI analyst</h2> Crunched builds autonomous AI systems that operate inside Excel-automating strategy, modelling, and financial workflows without breaking how people already work. Our AI analyst is already used by professionals at BCG, Nordover Capital, INSEAD, Harvard, Explore, Arkwright, Connaught, and Placepoint. We're backed by Y Combinator, have raised 55M NOK, and recently spent several months in San Francisco. Now, we're assembling the core Oslo team, and we're hiring a Senior UX Designer to own the user experience of our AI analyst. <h2>Why Crunched can win</h2> Large AI platforms like Anthropic are serious competitors. Crunched is different because we build deeply for the top 1--2% of Excel power users and their highly specific workflows. In every direct customer evaluation against competing products so far, Crunched has won on quality. First Round heard pitches from 75 AI-for-Excel startups over the past year---and chose to invest in Crunched. This is not a surface-level UI role. This is about designing trust, clarity, and control in a complex, AI-driven product-embedded directly into Excel. <h2>What you'll do</h2> <ul><li> Own the end-to-end UX of Crunched's AI analyst-from concept to shipped product </li><li> Design interaction models for AI-driven workflows, not just screens </li><li> Apply user psychology and behavioral principles to reduce cognitive load and build trust </li><li> Build and evolve a systematic UX framework grounded in real user feedback </li><li> Design within the constraints of Excel while subtly expanding beyond it </li><li> Partner closely with engineers to ensure designs are feasible, performant, and shippable </li><li> Continuously test, learn, and iterate with real users across Europe and the US </li><li> Shape the long-term UX strategy and design language of Crunched </li></ul> <h2>Who you are</h2> You're a senior, strategically strong UX designer who is still deeply hands-on. You think in systems, flows, and mental models-not just components. You enjoy getting things done and take pride in shipping work that actually changes how people operate. You likely bring: <ul><li> Deep understanding of user psychology and decision-making in complex tools </li><li> Strong experience designing data-heavy, B2B, or professional software </li><li> A systematic approach to UX, grounded in research, feedback loops, and iteration </li><li> Experience designing for AI-powered products (or complex automation tools) </li><li> An impeccable eye for aesthetics, leaning toward simplicity without being sterile or boring </li><li> Comfort working closely with engineers and product leaders in fast-moving teams </li><li> A high-ownership mindset and comfort with ambiguity </li></ul> You don't just make things look good. You make them make sense. <h2>Design philosophy</h2> At Crunched, UX is not decoration. We care about: <ul><li> Clarity over cleverness </li><li> Calm interfaces for high-stakes work </li><li> Power without intimidation </li><li> Simplicity that respects expert users </li></ul> We expect strong opinions-backed by reasoning and user insight. <h2>Compensation</h2> We hire world-class people and compensate accordingly. <ul><li> Competitive Salary, Depending on experience </li><li> Over 1M NOK in equity from day one </li><li> ARR-based compensation ladder where you choose between major salary increases or more equity </li><li> Best possible strike price allowed by legal counsel </li><li> Standard 4-year vesting with 1-year cliff </li></ul> If you want real ownership and real upside, this is it. We compensate well - and we expect people with the same growth ambitions and time investment required to build something truly big.