Startups We Admire (and Want to Design For)
We built a tool. That’s it. That’s the post. #
Okay, not quite. But yes — https://curated.dnsk.work is just a simple, slightly obsessive tool we made to track the startups we keep accidentally redesigning in our heads. It’s not a lead gen gimmick. Not a case study hub. Definitely not SEO-driven (sorry, robots). Just a lovingly maintained public list of “Hey… why aren’t we working with these people?”
You know those internal Slack threads where someone drops a product link and says “This is kind of great. But also…” — followed by 15 messages about onboarding flows, font weight choices, and how their navbar would look better with less cognitive debt?
We took that energy, put it on a webpage, and made it click-safe.
Why We Made It #
Because taste isn’t just about what you ship. It’s also about what you notice.
We kept catching ourselves watching certain startups closely — not because they were clients, but because they were interesting. Clear signals. Sharp products. Great ideas just a few pixels away from greatness. Stuff that makes you want to roll up your sleeves.
At some point we realised we were doing the same dance over and over:
- Admire it.
- Critique it (with love).
- Mentally redesign a few things.
- Wonder aloud how we’d approach it.
- Forget to write it down.
- Repeat.
So we built a home for it. That’s the whole origin story. One part nerdy admiration, one part creative impulse containment system.
What It Actually Is #
Six startups (for now). For each one:
- A quick note on what we love
- One honest suggestion on what we’d improve
- A button that says, “We’d design for them.” Because we would.
No scores. No stars. No ranking. Just product crushes with commentary.
We’re not trying to dunk. We’re not trying to flatter. We’re trying to make our taste visible — and have a little fun while we’re at it.
A Totally Objective, Highly Scientific Selection Process™ #
Here’s how something ends up on the list:
- Someone says “I love this” out loud (very important)
- Another person says “But this bit…”
- The thread spirals into low-key design therapy
- Someone makes a Figma file
- Someone else makes pasta
- Eventually, it lands on curated.dnsk.work
It’s not rigorous. But it is consistent. We’re drawn to products that:
– Have something to say
– Show strong early design instincts
– Are 80% of the way to being brilliant
– Would be dangerous with the right UX partner
Examples? Sure. #
We’ll keep it short here, but go browse the site for the full nerdy write-ups.
DEEP CLEAR – AI diagnostics for health. Super crisp idea. Could use a little more soul in the UI. Maybe a spark of motion. Something human.
Fueld AI – Food tracking, but less beige. Gorgeous product logic. But the meals/journey/flow dance? Let’s talk. We have thoughts. (And recipes.)
AITHENA – Pharma content review, but smart. Honestly, just let us play with the team dashboard.
Fixo AI – CMMS reimagined. Love the positioning. Let’s punch up the experience to match the clarity.
They’re all like that. Specific. Respectful. Slightly itchy.
What This Tool Says About Us (Whether We Like It or Not) #
Let’s be real. You can tell a lot about a person by who they admire. Same goes for studios.
This tool is a window. Into our taste. Into what excites us. Into the kinds of products we secretly want to fix when no one’s asking us to.
It’s not performative. It’s compulsive.
We literally couldn’t not make this.
And no, it’s not for outreach. If one of these companies reaches out, great. If not, we’ll keep quietly rooting for them — and publicly obsessing over their interface decisions like normal, healthy adults.
What Happens Next? #
We’ll add more startups as we find them. Probably redesign one or two in private. Maybe publish a teardown if the stars align.
We’ll also keep revisiting the blurbs, because (1) taste evolves and (2) we love an excuse to update copy.
This isn’t a static wall. It’s a live conversation. One built on admiration, critique, and the belief that pointing at good things and asking how they could be better is one of the best things a design team can do.
Closing Note (And Yes, It’s Slightly Sappy) #
This little tool? It’s a love letter to sharp teams doing smart things.
If you’re on the list, we like your work. A lot. Enough to write about it. Enough to build a site. Enough to imagine what your product could feel like at its most refined, confident, and joyful.
And if you’re not? Maybe we just haven’t found you yet. Or maybe we’re already lurking in your signup flow, wondering how your modal timing works.
Either way, thanks for making cool stuff. You make the internet less boring.
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DNSK WORK
Design studio for digital products
https://dnsk.work