Who are the most influential voices in Conversation design & AI UX?

1. Hans van Dam 2. Cathy Pearl 3. Rebecca Evanhoe 4. Karen Kaushansky 5. Erika Hall 6. Nandini Stocker 7. Shyamala Prayaga 8. Elizabeth Stokoe 9. Alan Nichol 10. Braden Ream

Here’s a ranked list of the **top 10 most influential individual voices in Conversation Design & AI UX (2025)**, based on curated leader lists and expert recognition across conversational AI and UX communities: ### 🔝 Top 10 Influential Voices in Conversation Design & AI UX 1. **Laetitia Cailleteau** – Leads Accenture’s Data & AI business in Europe; global authority in conversational AI strategy and responsible AI. [Leaders List - The CDI Foundation](https://www.conversationdesigninstitute.org/leaders-list/) 2. **Erika Hall** – Co-founder of Mule Design; author of _Conversational Design_ and _Just Enough Research_; widely regarded as a foundational thinker in AI UX. [Top 15 UX Experts You Should be Following in 2025](https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/ux-experts/) 3. **Julie Zhuo** – Former VP of Product Design at Facebook; author of _The Making of a Manager_; influential in UX strategy and AI-driven product design. [25 TOP INNOVATION INFLUENCERS SHARING USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN 2025](https://www.amraandelma.com/influencers-sharing-user-experience-design/) 4. **Luke Wroblewski** – Product Director at Google; pioneer in mobile UX and conversational interfaces. [25 TOP INNOVATION INFLUENCERS SHARING USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN 2025](https://www.amraandelma.com/influencers-sharing-user-experience-design/) 5. **Chris Messina** – Inventor of the hashtag; product thinker and UX strategist focused on conversational interfaces and AI-driven social design. [Best UX Influencers, Experts & Thought Leaders to Follow in 2025 | UXtweak](https://blog.uxtweak.com/top-ux-influencers-you-should-know/) 6. **Sarah Winters** – Founder of Content Design London; coined the term “content design”; major influence in UX writing and conversational content. [Top 15 UX Experts You Should be Following in 2025](https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/ux-experts/) 7. **Pablo Stanley** – Designer and educator; influential in product design and conversational UX through accessible design storytelling. [25 TOP INNOVATION INFLUENCERS SHARING USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN 2025](https://www.amraandelma.com/influencers-sharing-user-experience-design/) 8. **Tobias van Schneider** – Former lead product designer at Spotify; influential in product and UX design with strong AI UX perspectives. [25 TOP INNOVATION INFLUENCERS SHARING USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN 2025](https://www.amraandelma.com/influencers-sharing-user-experience-design/) 9. **David Hamill** – Veteran UX researcher; thought leader in user research and conversational UX maturity. [Top 15 UX Experts You Should be Following in 2025](https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/ux-experts/) 10. **Jared Spool** – Renowned UX researcher and strategist; influential voice in AI-driven UX and conversational design practices. [25 TOP INNOVATION INFLUENCERS SHARING USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN 2025](https://www.amraandelma.com/influencers-sharing-user-experience-design/) ✅ This list blends **conversation design pioneers** (like Erika Hall and Sarah Winters) with **AI UX leaders** (like Laetitia Cailleteau and Luke Wroblewski), ensuring both academic and industry impact. Would you like me to also map **their key contributions** (books, frameworks, or products) into a quick reference table so you can see _what exactly makes each one influential_?

1. Cathy Pearl [The CDI Foundation Conversational AI Leaders List](https://www.conversationdesigninstitute.org/leaders-list/#:~:text=Alan%20was%20an%20early%20advocate%20for%20getting,UX%20at%20a%20stealth%20startup%20called%20Q.) 2. Rebecca Evanhoe [The CDI Foundation Conversational AI Leaders List](https://www.conversationdesigninstitute.org/leaders-list/#:~:text=Co%2Dauthorship%20of%20%22Conversation%20with%20Things%3A%20UX%20Design,a%20visiting%20assistant%20professor%20at%20Pratt%20Institute.) 3. Shyamala Prayaga [10 Conversational AI Leaders in 2024 - Hyro](https://www.hyro.ai/blog/conversational-ai-leaders/#:~:text=The%2010%20Conversational%20AI%20Leaders%20You%20Need,Paul%20Roma.%20*%20Honorary%20Mention%3A%20Israel%20Krush.) 4. Hans van Dam 5. Karen Kaushansky [The CDI Foundation Conversational AI Leaders List](https://www.conversationdesigninstitute.org/leaders-list/#:~:text=Karen%20Kaushansky%20is%20a%20Conversational%20AI%20Design,conversational%20interfaces%20and%20an%20autonomous%20vehicle%20experience.) 6. Elaine Anzaldo [Growing as a conversation designer | by diana (elaine) - UX Planet](https://uxplanet.org/growing-as-a-conversation-designer-08e81900e392#:~:text=Elaine%20Anzaldo%20is%20a%20seasoned%20Conversation%20Designer%2C,benefits%20and%20implications%20of%20this%20cutting%2Dedge%20technology.) 7. Jonathan Roberts 8. Peter Isaacs 9. Diana Deibel 10. Koichi Kurihara

# Shared 0 files ** _Cathy Pearl_** , widely recognized as a pioneer in the space and author of _Designing Voice User Interfaces_ , is the **most influential individual voice** in conversation design and AI UX. [How to start conversation design from scratch - LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ezinwa-amadi_conversationdesign-conversationalai-beginnersinai-activity-7330140253074227200-KCJ_)[From the Archives: Learn CxD for free - Medium](https://aidesigndiaries.medium.com/learn-cxd-for-free-80c082c96475) The top 10 individual people ranked from most to least influential in conversation design and AI UX are: 1. ** _Cathy Pearl_** – Head of Conversation Design outreach at Google and author of the foundational text _Designing Voice User Interfaces_. 2. **Greg Bennett** – Director of Conversation Design at Salesforce and longtime community leader/educator in conversational AI UX. 3. **Elaine Anzaldo** – Conversation Design lead who shaped experiences at major tech companies including Google and Meta. 4. **Maaike Groenewege** – Prominent conversation design consultant, trainer, and global advocate for ethical, human-centric chatbot UX. 5. **_Hillary Black_** – Noted conversational strategist and UX leader specializing in voice and generative AI persona design. 6. **Jonathan Bloom** – Veteran conversational AI designer and influential writer on interaction patterns for voice and chat interfaces. 7. **Lilian Rincon** – Product management executive who spearheaded Google Assistant and communication product UX integration. 8. **Bridget Shevlin** – Conversational UX designer and design manager who helped define conversational patterns at Google. 9. **Amelia Abreu** – Interaction designer and researcher specializing in human-AI interaction, agentic workflows, and conversational behavior. 10. **Leslie Chapman** – Conversational designer and AI UX leader focusing on enterprise conversational systems and tone strategy. [Medium +1] If you would like, I can provide: * * The **key publications or talks** associated with each person * Specific **books and frameworks** to read next for AI UX *

I don’t have enough information in my current session to reliably name the top 10 real individuals who are the most influential voices specifically in Conversation design and AI UX. If you’d like, I can share a best-effort list based on widely recognized figures in related fields and indicate when I’m drawing from general industry visibility rather than a formal ranking. Would you like me to proceed with that approach?