I was contacted by Abridge via LinkedIn for a design role. The initial recruiter screen was positive and energetic, and she was eager to schedule time with the VP of Design. I couldn’t accommodate the accelerated timeline, so we agreed to meet about a week later. The conversation with the VP of Design felt surprisingly out of step for an AI‑forward company. She came across as fairly skeptical about AI, at one point describing the ideal hire as someone who is “fairly AI‑pilled,” which landed as dismissive rather than curious. At my level (25+ years as a Principal Designer and founder), I typically see portfolio conversations unfold more as a strategic dialogue than a file walkthrough, but there was a strong expectation to open working files (likely Figma mocks) and “drive” the discussion. It became clear very quickly that there had been little to no preparation for the interview. The hiring manager did not seem familiar with my background, and the conversation around the vague “help us build an AI design system” remit lacked depth or concrete questions. While I don’t think healthcare experience is a strict prerequisite to lead design at a healthcare company, explicitly emphasizing having “no healthcare experience” was not particularly confidence‑inspiring, especially paired with very low visible energy (frequent yawning during the call). Overall, I felt like more of a number than a serious candidate. The hiring manager did not demonstrate a strong grasp of AI, did not articulate a clear design vision for the role, and did not project much enthusiasm for healthcare or for design leadership. After the interview, I emailed the recruiter to thank her for her time and never received a reply. A brief “no thanks” note or automated rejection would have gone a long way toward closing the loop respectfully. One additional signal: this is a company that has been around for roughly a decade with a complex product UI, yet they are only now starting to build out a design team. That history suggests design has not been a meaningful part of the culture until very recently. Overall, this was a disappointing candidate experience.