Madsen Vale, Product Designer based in Berlin

Madsen ValeProduct DesignerBerlin

I design products, lead teams, and ship my own apps.

Hands-on at every step, designing, mentoring, shaping processes, backing bold ideas.

Universal Music Group Mercedes-Benz Coca-Cola Heineken Zattoo Selfapy 1&1 Salt
(01) AI Manifesto

AI Removes Friction,
Not Judgment.

01

I use AI as a tool, not a replacement.

02

I don’t chase speed without intention.

03

I set different guardrails for enterprise and personal work. I know where the line is.

04

I question the output. I know where AI helps and where it falls apart.

05

I protect sensitive data. I respect creative work.

06

I catch bias in outputs. That’s my responsibility.

07

I don’t skip the conversation about what AI means for our industry.

08

I know when AI isn’t the right solution. And when it isn’t the ethical one.

M.V.
Berlin, February 2026

(02) Voices

Working With Me

* Now talking in #would-hire-again
* Topic is 'What's it like working with Madsen?'
<head_of_design> He takes action, gives structure to chaos, and makes life easier across product, engineering, design, and support. I would always hire him again.
<product_owner> At Mercedes-Benz, he framed problems deeply, moved fast on first approaches, and kept challenging assumptions to find better solutions.
<product_designer> He nurtures designers, aligns people, and builds a strong design culture that sticks.
<product_designer> Thorough and strategic, great at cutting red tape, and built a design system from scratch with stakeholder buy-in.
<design_director> An extremely talented designer who raised platform quality through finely crafted interfaces, strong guidelines, and proactive cross-functional collaboration.
<ceo> Passionate and dedicated, improving usability without losing sight of business goals. A strong recommendation.
<hr_lead> Structured, creative, and highly professional, but also a very nice colleague everybody would love to work with.
<tech_lead> Helped us ship top-notch products, establish a design system, and get engineering and design speaking the same language.
<marketing_director> Deep user empathy across markets, plus the perseverance, boldness, and creativity to exceed goals.
<mentee> Kind and easy-going. It felt like talking to a friend, with clear guidance on client vs consultancy paths.
<product_manager> At Universal, he introduced new ways of working, aligned stakeholders through better product conversations, and turned vision into pragmatic user improvements.
<madsen> all real quotes btw. no one was bribed or threatened.
(03) Case Studies

Designed it.
Shipped it.

2020

Shipping Design at Enterprise Scale

Led the design and integration of a contactless fuelling payment feature into the Mercedes-Benz ecosystem.

10+ business units involved
1K+ users interviewed
Read Case Study
Zattoo TV app interface 2019

Making Live TV Feel Like Streaming

Redesigned Zattoo's flagship Recordings feature, improving content discovery and watch duration.

15 platforms
3M+ households
Read Case Study

Keynotes

Design, Build, and Ship an App with AI
View Keynote
Reasoning with the Unreasonable
View Keynote
Selfapy app design
UI design work sample
UI design work sample
Selfapy mental health app screen
UI design work sample
Selfapy app interface design
UI design work sample
Zattoo streaming app design
Selfapy app design exploration
Zattoo TV app interface
Zattoo TV app screen design
UI design work sample
Selfapy app onboarding design
UI design work sample
Selfapy app design
UI design work sample
(04) Maker's Life

Zero to App Store

Frido & Friends is my passion project where I design, build, and ship products to tackle everyday challenges.

To Do Cards To Do Cards
Lume Lume
Little Notes Little Notes
Pochete Pochete
Tuner Tuner
Wallie Wallie
Moons Moons
Frido Frido
2.5M+ Eyeballs
$0 Funding
#2 Product Hunt
Visit Frido.app
(05) Process

What I Bring, and How I Get Involved.

I turn ambiguity into direction

I partner with teams that have active products but unclear priorities. I redesign key entry points, onboarding flows, and conversion funnels. I test, iterate, and move the numbers that matter: acquisition, conversion, retention.

  • Early-Stage Discovery
  • User Research
  • Opportunity Mapping
  • Growth Design
  • Stakeholder Alignment

I design and ship the actual thing

I design and ship features hands-on. I prototype at all fidelities, refine core journeys, maintain design systems, and write code when it makes things move faster. Fast to build, solid enough to evolve.

  • AI-Assisted Development
  • Visual Design
  • Design Systems
  • Rapid Validation
  • Accessibility Compliance

I give teams momentum

I build processes that stick. Tooling that scales. Measurement that matters. I hire the right people and flex with freelancers and agencies when needed. Better work becomes the default.

  • Design Leadership
  • People Management
  • Hybrid Team Scaling
  • Process Design
  • Maturity Uplift
(06) About

I am Madsen Vale.

Great design happens where method meets instinct.

Hands on at every step, I design, mentor, structure processes, and support bold ideas, using AI to accelerate progress when it helps.

I’ve done this for Fortune 500 companies like Mercedes-Benz, Universal Music, and Coca-Cola, as well as for startups across various stages and industries.

Outside of work, I build and ship indie apps through Frido & Friends, make questionable music, and offer pro bono mentoring.

You'll often see me keeping a positive attitude and advocating for fairness.

ProptechHealthtechAutomotiveSaaSD2CB2BE-commerceMusicFood & BeverageNews & MediaStreaming ProptechHealthtechAutomotiveSaaSD2CB2BE-commerceMusicFood & BeverageNews & MediaStreaming
Madsen Vale Madsen Vale
  • 🏆 Emmy-winning product
  • 🥈 European Design Award Winner
  • 🎯 Maker of Coca-Cola's first Facebook app
  • 🚀 Product Hunt #2 with Frido
  • 💜 Pro bono mentor for designers & NGOs
LinkedIn Resume