I'm building a UX Skills Assessment tool (and taking you along for the ride)

Hey John here!

It's been a while since my last email to you I took a short break to recharge and spend time with friends over the holidays.

But now I'm back, feeling energized and excited to share some big news with you.

After reflecting during my time off, I've decided to embark on an ambitious new project that I believe will revolutionize how we evaluate UX skills in our industry.

I'm thrilled to share something big with you today:

I'm building a UX Skills Assessment SaaS tool from scratch, and I want to take you behind the scenes every step of the way.

I'll be sharing detailed progress updates every weekday through this email newsletter and on social media (Twitter and Instagram - please follow me to stay in the loop!).

While I may not be a traditional developer, my computer science background combined with modern AI tools has opened up exciting possibilities.

Over the past few months, I've been leveraging cutting-edge AI development assistants like Gemini Pro, Cursor AI, Claude, and DeepSeek to accelerate my coding process. These tools have been game-changing, allowing me to build complex features that would typically take months to develop.

The results have exceeded my expectations - I'm able to iterate quickly, solve complex technical challenges, and maintain high code quality.

Throughout this journey, I'll be completely transparent about how I'm using AI tools, sharing both the successes and learning moments.

I believe this approach represents the future of design, where UX designers can bring their visions to life by combining domain expertise with AI capabilities and not just delivering static designs in Figma.

PROGRESS SO FAR:

I've completed the initial development setup and project structure.

The tech stack includes React with Tailwind CSS and shadcn components (with custom styling) for the frontend, Node.js with Express for the backend, and SupaBase for the database. I chose this stack carefully—it offers the perfect balance of speed for solo development while maintaining production-grade reliability.

BEHIND THE SCENES:

Here's something I haven't shared on social media: this project emerged from my frustration with the subjective nature of UX evaluation.

In my over 13 years in the industry, I've watched countless talented designers struggle to prove their skills objectively, while companies resort to theoretical tests instead of practical assessments.

I believe AI can bridge this gap by delivering consistent, objective analysis of real design work.

THE 24-WEEK PLAN:

Here's my roadmap for building this tool over the next 24 weeks, dedicating 4-5 hours daily after work:

• Weeks 1-4: Foundation (design system, authentication, onboarding, complete E2E design and design file management in Figma)

• Weeks 5-8: Core features (assessment configuration, results display)

• Weeks 9-12: AI analysis foundation (image processing, element detection)

• Weeks 13-16: Advanced analysis (usability heuristics, accessibility)

• Weeks 17-20: Figma integration (API connection, import workflow)

• Weeks 21-24: Refinement and launch (testing, optimization, marketing)

Through this newsletter, you'll get exclusive daily updates on my challenges, solutions, and insights.

You'll see the unfiltered journey of building a SaaS product solo—content I won't share anywhere else.

I'm curious:

Which aspect of UX skills assessment interests you most?

Is it usability evaluation, accessibility, visual design, or something else?

Reply directly to this email—I read and respond to every message.

Coming tomorrow: I'll share the design principles guiding this tool and my initial sketches for the UI.

Let's build something great together, John