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Design Roles & Portfolios in the AI Era

Design Roles & Portfolios in the AI Era

Date and time: Wed, Nov 11, 2026; 16:00 – 17:00 UTC
Location: Online; Register for the link

About the Meetup

📢 This session will be held in Turkish.

What AI is actually changing in a designer’s job, and what that means for your portfolio.

“Should I learn to code?” is the wrong question. The right one is: what does a company actually expect from a designer now, and what should your portfolio prove about it?

This session starts with the job itself: how AI is reshaping design workflows, what companies are looking for in job posts today, and where titles like “product designer”, “design engineer” and “AI product designer” are heading. From there, we move to the portfolio: what it should prove when anyone can generate a nice-looking screen, where AI fits in, and what a hiring designer looks at in the first 60 seconds. We’ll walk through a few portfolio examples we like, then give live feedback on participant portfolios. If you’ve ever wondered whether your portfolio still reflects the job you’re applying for, this session is for you.

👥 Who Should Attend

Product, UX and UI designers updating their portfolio for today’s market
Designers curious about the design engineer or AI product designer path
Early-career designers deciding which role to prepare for

💡 What You’ll Learn

How AI is changing day-to-day design work: research, prototyping, handoff
What companies actually ask for now, and which skills moved up the list
Where “product designer” ends and “design engineer” begins
What a portfolio should prove in 2026, and how to show AI-assisted work

💬 Live Portfolio Feedback

Our guest Batuhan Karasakal is a Senior Product Design Engineer, where he builds agentic products. With 9+ years in product design, he previously worked as a design engineer at Lindy and as a senior product designer at Paysend and Twisto. He joins to walk through a few portfolio examples and give live feedback on participant portfolios. Want yours reviewed? Send your portfolio link to [email protected] 🙌🏻

🎁 What You’ll Leave With

A clear picture of which role to aim for and what skills it needs
Concrete ideas on what to highlight, cut or add in your portfolio
A hiring designer’s view of what actually gets noticed

📍 Details

Date: Wednesday, 11 November 2026
Time: 19:00 to 20:00 (Istanbul time, GMT+3)
Location: Online, Google Meet (link on this page)
Cost: Free and open to all

✨ Click “Attend this Meetup” to secure your spot. Portfolio review slots are limited, so send your link early.

Not yet an IxDF member? Join with 3 months off your annual membership: https://www.ixdf.org/join/?r=ilgin-sel-balta

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Presented by

IxDF Istanbul

6 of 50 spots taken

6 Going

Hosted By

IxDF Local Leader distinction: Local Leader of an IxDF Local Group
IxDF Community Leader distinction: Awarded for serving as an influential IxDF community leader
IxDF Best-in-Class distinction: Completed an IxDF Course with a score of 100%
IxDF Connected Professional distinction: Attended 10 or more IxDF Meetups
+6

İstanbul, Turkey

Ilgın Sel Balta

Senior Product Designer

Why Join

Meet people who love design as much as you do. Together we learn new skills, grow our networks, and discover new job opportunities.

Meetup Conversation

by Ilgın Sel Balta

11 hours ago

IxDF Local Leader distinction: Local Leader of an IxDF Local Group
IxDF Community Leader distinction: Awarded for serving as an influential IxDF community leader
IxDF Best-in-Class distinction: Completed an IxDF Course with a score of 100%
IxDF Connected Professional distinction: Attended 10 or more IxDF Meetups
+6

Hi everyone! I'm happy to invite you to Design Roles & Portfolios in the AI Era, happening on Nov 11, 2026.

Anyone is welcome to sign up for this meetup. Just click the “Attend This Meetup” button to see all the details and get important updates by email. Feel free to share this meetup page with others to sign up and use this thread to ask questions or connect with everyone joining. See you there!

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IxDF Local Groups meet regularly in person at cafés, company offices, or creative spaces to share ideas, give feedback, run workshops, and learn from each other. Many groups also organize IxDF Design Dinners, where the conversation goes deeper over a meal. These aren't just social events. Members find collaborators, clients, job leads, and future teammates through them.

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