By: Felicia Guo
Su He, a senior design leader focused on AI-driven innovation, faced one of her greatest challenges in 2021 when Zhengzhou, China, was hit by severe flooding that threatened both safety and communication. In the midst of this crisis, Su stepped in with her extensive technical expertise in AI system design, combined with a sense of urgency and empathy that set her approach apart. Leading an AI initiative at ByteDance, she designed a notification system to connect employees across the city, ensuring they could receive the support they needed as much as possible. In the Zhengzhou deployment, Su leveraged AI technology to reportedly increase communication efficiency by as much as 200%. It wasn’t just about work; it was about keeping people connected during an unprecedented time of uncertainty. Since its development, the AI system is said to have sent over 1 million notifications to 150,000 internal users over a span of two years, helping ensure they received support when needed. This effort illustrated Su’s belief that technology should not only be functional—it should fundamentally uplift humanity.
From crisis response to enterprise innovation, Su He has often been noted for her work in applying AI to solve real-world challenges. Throughout her career, Su has demonstrated her ability to leverage technology for tangible societal benefits. Her journey is marked by a noted blend of technical expertise and a deep sense of social responsibility—traits that sources suggest define her leadership style.
At ByteDance, she grew the design team from scratch, reportedly interviewing over 100 candidates and ultimately expanding the team sevenfold. Su He was not merely a team leader but a driving force behind the creation of over 20 enterprise-level products from design to deployment. These products, which included web platforms, mobile solutions, and dashboards, were developed from the ground up under her direction. They are now used by hundreds of thousands of users, contributing to efficiency and enhanced user experiences across a wide spectrum of applications. Her leadership was not just about managing people—it was about transforming ideas into impactful products that addressed complex user needs, guiding projects from conception to successful deployment.
Su He played a pivotal role in establishing the department design process, setting design standards, and cultivating a team culture at ByteDance. When she joined the department, there was no established design team, and she took the initiative to create a structured design process from the ground up. Su began by developing onboarding materials for new designers and collaborating on the design team’s operational model with PMs, engineers, and other stakeholders. She defined the design system roadmap, introduced UX research methodologies, and created a structured design process that included methodologies, workflows, and quality standards. To foster a collaborative environment, Su initiated internal and external design sharing forums, reportedly involving over 200 participants, including VPs, engineers, and product teams. This initiative helped build a design culture in the department, encouraging collaboration across teams. Su also created and maintained the design guidelines, outlining principles for color, typography, and interaction design. These guidelines were reportedly updated bi-monthly and tailored for 2B products, aimed at upholding high design standards across projects. Through these efforts, Su is noted for having enhanced design quality and efficiency while establishing a strong design culture within the department.
She also developed a career path for designers, helping ensure that each member of her team was supported in their growth as ByteDance expanded. Beyond leading her team, Su launched a mentoring program that sources indicate helped junior designers grow into formal design roles, supporting their professional development and contributing to ByteDance’s products’ quality.
One of Su He’s key contributions at ByteDance was her work on Lark, an enterprise office suite often referred to as the “Chinese version of Slack.” As one of the first five designers to join the U.S. Lark team, Su contributed significantly to its localization for the U.S. market, helping to adjust designs to better resonate with Western audiences. Her localization design supported the transformation of the Lark Office Suite, and her collaboration with the design agency on visual design was instrumental in its international appeal. This work reportedly contributed to an increase in Lark’s NPS (Net Promoter Score) by over 10 points.
While Su was part of a larger team of talented designers, her contributions were pivotal to Lark’s success. By 2021, Lark was ranked among the top three most popular office platforms in China, reportedly with over 4.6 million active users.
The story of Su He is one of intersections—between technology and humanity, leadership and empathy, vision and execution. Whether using AI to respond to a crisis or building platforms that empower millions, she aims to craft designs that are more than just functional—they are deeply meaningful. As AI continues to evolve, Su He remains committed to ensuring that technology serves to uplift and enrich the human experience.
Published by: Martin De Juan
