UI/UX Designer Lead

About the company: We are a startup team within Papaya , a successful and established gaming company. Our unit runs with full startup energy and agility, while benefiting from the stability and resources of Papaya. We’re building a new competitive game platform – where games and challenges come together in one engaging experience. About the role: We are looking for an experienced UI/UX Designer Lead to join us and help shape innovative mobile gaming experiences. This is a senior, hands-on individual contributor role for a designer with a strong background in gaming, exceptional UI/UX skills, and the ability to independently own complex product features from concept to launch. You will combine creative problem-solving, strong product thinking, and outstanding visual execution to deliver intuitive, engaging, and polished player experiences. We're looking for a fast-moving, highly creative designer who is passionate about gaming, embraces AI-powered workflows, and knows how to turn ambitious ideas into exceptional mobile experiences. End-to-End Design Ownership: Independently own product features from concept and UX planning through wireframes, high-fidelity UI, interactive prototypes, and development handoff. Gaming UX: Design engaging player experiences around competitive gameplay, progression systems, rewards, monetization, and retention mechanics. UI Design Excellence: Create polished, playful, and visually compelling mobile interfaces with exceptional attention to detail, consistency, and usability. Advanced Figma Workflow: Build and maintain scalable components, interactive prototypes, and structured design files, leveraging Figma's advanced capabilities to improve quality, consistency, and efficiency. AI-Powered Design: Actively integrate AI tools into the design process to accelerate ideation, visual exploration, prototyping, asset creation, and iteration. Product Optimization: Identify UX challenges, propose creative solutions, and continuously improve player experiences based on product insights, feedback, and performance data. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Product Managers, Developers, and Designers to translate product requirements into high-quality experiences and ensure precise implementation. 5+ Years of UI/UX Experience: Proven experience designing complex, mobile-first B2C digital products, with strong end-to-end ownership. Gaming Industry Experience – Required: Hands-on experience designing mobile games or gaming platforms, with a solid understanding of player behavior, game mechanics, progression, engagement, and retention. Expert-Level Figma – Required: Exceptional proficiency in Figma, including advanced Auto Layout, components, variants, variables, design systems, interactive prototyping, and developer handoff. Ability to work efficiently with complex design files and scalable component libraries. AI Proficiency – Required: Demonstrated hands-on experience using AI-powered design tools to enhance creativity, accelerate workflows, generate assets, explore concepts, and improve design efficiency. A proactive approach to experimenting with emerging AI technologies. Outstanding UI & UX Skills: A strong portfolio demonstrating excellent visual craftsmanship, intuitive user flows, and polished mobile experiences. Creative Problem Solving: Ability to think outside the box, challenge conventional solutions, and transform complex product challenges into engaging, user-friendly experiences. Speed & Execution: Ability to move quickly, iterate efficiently, and maintain exceptional design quality in a fast-paced product environment. Independent Ownership: Strong ability to manage complex design tasks autonomously, make informed design decisions, and drive features from initial concept through production. Motion Design – A Plus: Experience with After Effects, Rive, Lottie, or other motion and interaction design tools.