Jenny Wen is a designer at Anthropic where she is helping lead design on Claude, a next generation AI assistant.
She was previously Director of Design at Figma where she helped bring FigJam to market. She also worked on Slides, Community, as well as many other initiatives in her time there.
On her recent role switch:
Twitter (X) → https://x.com/jenny_wen
LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/jennywen
Bluesky → bsky.app/profile/jennywen.ca
Workspace Items
Apple MacBook Pro (14” M4)
Evoluent Wireless Vertical Mouse (it’s ugly as hell, but it’s the best vertical mouse for wrist problems)
HydroFlask 40oz water bottle
Furniture
MUJI digital clock
Old CB2 ladder bookshelves
Oil painting of the SF MUNI by Chris Duke
Digital Tools
iA Writer for scratchy notes
Notion for journaling and more serious docs
Figma and FigJam, obviously
Claude as my go-to AI companion
Microsoft To Do for task management
What is the most recent item that you've added to your workspace?
I... haven’t added anything new to my workspace in a while! In fact, a lot of my hardware is stuff I’ve had for years and that’s still alive and kicking. Maybe the last thing was a big monstera I got at The Sill sample sale a few months ago.
How do you spark creativity?
I love getting all ideas out there, including the bad ones. When I’m designing, I try to draw out every idea. No matter how incremental, or how much I know it won’t be a good idea. Staying in the flow of creating and getting the ideas out tends to lead to places I never expected.
Workspace-wise, I love to fill my space with objects that feel deeply personal and joyful. I have notes from my coworkers hung up, a poster that my team made for a work anniversary, art from places I’ve visited or traveled to, thrifted mugs, etc. These things make me I feel like the space is truly my own and a place where I can do my best work.
What does your typical day look like?
Since I’m on the east coast and I have a lot of coworkers on the west coast, mornings tend to be quiet. I try to have my coffee in peace — reading a bit on my Kindle before I crack open my laptop. Then, I’ll spend the morning with heads down time, trying to avoid Slack as much as possible.
Afternoons tend to be more meeting-heavy, but I also like to carve out an hour or two at the end of the day to reflect and follow up on stuff.
If you enjoyed this edition of Workspaces, please consider sending it to someone that you think would love it just as much! ❤️
-Ryan (@rjgilbert)
