'May the best one win': a tournament-based brainstorming agent
Google IdeaForge
The problem
Most current GenAI tools aren't built for true brainstorming; they are built for execution.
Every business owner knows the dread of staring at a blank whiteboard, searching for the next big product idea. When inspiration runs dry, the standard advice is always to "think creatively." Naturally, today's creators turn to GenAI for help—only to hit a digital wall.
Users are trapped in repetitive loops, requiring extensive back-and-forth prompting just to get past surface-level answers.
Endless iteration drains time in open-ended scenarios or when there are minimal constraints.
GenAI is bound by its existing data & limited context, so outputs rarely feel genuinely creative, novel, or deeply tailored.
So we ask…
How might we transform GenAI from a passive, literal assistant into an active, contextual co-creator that genuinely drives creative breakthroughs?
The context
Deloitte Digital was approached by a team from Google Cloud to help bring a developer’s idea to life. They had identified the problem above and hoped to find a more efficient alternative to iterative brainstorming based on the developer’s idea, and to visualize that solution while staying aligned to Google’s branding & design language.
The process
Navigating a fast-paced environment with weekly sprints, I prioritized functional validation over perfection. Whenever a new feature was introduced, my immediate focus was proving its downstream value and seamless integration into the existing user flow.
My solution was supported by:
Daily leadership alignment: Rapidly iterated on wireframes and interaction patterns based on daily syncs with team leads to compress feedback loops.
Client-centric evolution: Moved concepts from ideation to high-fidelity execution at pace, ensuring every design pivot strictly aligned with evolving client requirements.
The solution
Google IdeaForge:
hundreds of ideas, one ultimate winner.
IdeaForge is a brainstorming super-agent that mimics the chaotic brilliance of our human creativity, then adds a competitive edge. By running hundreds of AI models against your prompt, it battles, refines, and filters a massive bracket of concepts through a customized rubric. Think of it as a gamified tournament for your next big idea, delivering the single best output from a pool of hundreds.
Let's dive deeper.
key features
Breaking down the goal
IdeaForge equips a semi-interactive whiteboard and chat to best understand the user’s needs, and sorts that into 1) primary goal, 2) scoring criteria, and 3) additional inspiration. It’s a lot less overwhelming to simply identify these 3 items, rather than having to articulate a full-fledged prompt immediately.
Semi-interactive whiteboard to
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Interactive prototype
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The impact
60+ refined, validated, and documented high-fidelity designs resulted in:
2.5x faster user journey
This product will be used by 2k+ data practitioners at Visa, replacing their current systems at a global scale.
What's next for the project
MVP ✅
Full platform coming soon!
Visa is currently engineering the MVP of my designs as the foundational step toward building out a complete, end-to-end platform.
Reflections
This project taught me how to design for large-scale, technical systems.
Designing for large-scale and data-driven users means prioritizing efficiency, tackling high cognitive load, and understanding that there is zero-error tolerance.
Working with developers and data practitioners exposed me to technical systems and terminology up-close. I am now more comfortable speaking to my designs in the context of data and technical systems
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About Grace
Background, design philosophy, and the broader story behind the portfolio work.
Let's design the future of your product, together.
I’m open to discussing full-time opportunities, design systems, or impactful UX strategy. Get in touch or explore my resume.
graceerya@gmail.com
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