About Matt Stenquist

INTRODUCTION

Hey, I’m Matt 🤙

I’m a Product Design Engineer and the founding designer at Sortie. I work on AI tools, apps and design systems.

Currently, I’m a founding designer working in the AI/ML space. I code and design delightful experiences that people can enjoy. ✌️

I teach design systems and engineering through Learn.systems: masterclasses, bootcamps and courses for games, apps and anything in between. I also make films and build games.

Matt outside an illuminated temple in Kyoto at night — KYOTO, JAPAN

BACKGROUND

In 2019, I was training in Switzerland for the next snowboard contest season when I fell almost three stories. I broke my back and suffered a brain injury. The damage to my spinal cord left me paralyzed from the waist down. I co-founded a startup from my hospital bed anyway, and design and code became my full-time work. I’ve lived and worked around the world, studied gameplay programming, and earned an EMBA with a focus on finance.

I mentor with AIGA in New York and Philadelphia, and I’m a member of the International Game Developers Association. I also help people with disabilities land roles in tech.

FUN FACT: 14
Cities I’ve lived in, across eight countries.

Here is an actual scan of my brain. I suffered an SCI and TBI training in Switzerland for the upcoming FIS competition circuit.

こんにちは

映画もゲームも道具も、気づけば何か作っているし、そこで覚えたことは誰かに話したくなる。

SNOWBOARDING

I’ve been snowboarding for 21 years, and I rode professionally for a big part of that. Now I’m building Pineapple Mtn, a snowboarding game made by a real snowboarder: avalanches, sluffs, real park physics and a dash of arcade wackiness.

Outside work, I make Figma plugins, shaders and desktop pets. I study what I don’t understand yet and turn it into tools or classes. Sometimes it’s just for fun.

YEARS: 21
Snowboarding

FILM

Chapters from a documentary we shot.

CHAPTER 011 / 5

CHAPTER 022 / 5

CHAPTER 033 / 5

CHAPTER 044 / 5

CHAPTER 055 / 5

この映像の大半を撮影してくれたのは、JULIAN MARSHALL。１か月もの間、僕の馬鹿な振る舞いに付き合ってくれた。２０年以上の付き合いになる彼を友人と呼べることに、ずっと感謝している。

GALLERY

A place for all the pictures I’ve taken.

JAPAN4 PICTURES

A city skyline at dusk with Mount Fuji on the horizon

SWITZERLAND2 PICTURES

MORE9 PICTURES

An X-ray of a spine held with surgical screws

PLACES I’VE LIVED

I lived all over the world as a kid and a teenager. Later I spent roughly ten years in Europe as a professional snowboarder.

LOS ANGELES
Local time ––:––
CALIFORNIA, USA34.05° N, 118.24° W
TOKYO
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JAPAN35.69° N, 139.69° E
RIYADH
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SAUDI ARABIA24.71° N, 46.68° E
BREDA
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NETHERLANDS51.59° N, 4.78° E
LEYSIN
Local time ––:––
SWITZERLAND46.34° N, 7.01° E
ZURICH
Local time ––:––
SWITZERLAND47.38° N, 8.54° E
CHICAGO
Local time ––:––
ILLINOIS, USA41.88° N, 87.63° W
LONDON
Local time ––:––
UK51.51° N, 0.13° W
LAKE TAHOE
Local time ––:––
CALIFORNIA, USA39.08° N, 120.03° W
PARK CITY
Local time ––:––
UTAH, USA40.65° N, 111.50° W
JACKSON HOLE
Local time ––:––
WYOMING, USA43.48° N, 110.76° W
BOZEMAN
Local time ––:––
MONTANA, USA45.68° N, 111.04° W
BANGKOK
Local time ––:––
THAILAND13.75° N, 100.49° E
WANAKA
Local time ––:––
NEW ZEALAND44.70° S, 169.13° E

PRESS

.NET MAGAZINEWORKSPACE FEATURE · 2019
WEB DESIGNERSO-GNAR · 2012
SNOWSTYLEMY FIRST SNOWBOARD FEATURE · 2008

FEATURED IN & ON

WRITING TOPICS

Topics I write about: tech, AI, making games and everything in between.

DESIGNING FOR SCALE
IN THE AGE OF UNCERTAINTY
F2P GAMEPLAY PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUES
ON CONTEXT ENTROPY

EXPERIENCE

SORTIE

Founding Design Engineer

CHOMP

Founding Designer

HOMESTRETCH

Founding Designer

MEMORISELY

Design Systems & UI Design Instructor

OOOH.TV

Senior Product Designer

MAINSPACE

Founding Designer, Principal Designer & Co-Founder

IBM AVERY

UI Designer

ASSASSIN’S CREED

UI Designer (University)

OBEY THE GIANT

Web Designer

CARTOON NETWORK

Web and Branding Contractor

GAME MEDIC

Founder

SO-GNAR

Web Developer

Outside of design experience I’ve been a: Snowboard judge for the Freeride World Tour (and also competitor), Windells Snowboard coach, Filmer, Monster Energy athlete, professional snowboarder, sidewalk surfer (skateboarding), indie gamedev, and more.

多才

EDUCATION

Los Angeles Film School
Breda University of Applied Sciences
Quantic University EMBA
Leysin American School of Switzerland
Olympic Academy Park City
Swiss Avalanche Institute - SAR

IN THEIR WORDS

1/3

He speaks engineer, but can also drive implementation when needed. Matt is a lifelong and voracious learner, and he was always working to spread his knowledge; he started a book study group, and continually contributed to research projects and discussions -- all of these were above and beyond the expectations of his role.

Charlie HelmanTechnical PM at Oooh

Matt is extremely passionate about his work, and consistently delivers at a high-quality. My last project with him was an ambitious feature which integrated some ML functionality which can sometimes be a challenge to design for, and the designs he produced were a source of excitement on the work for the feature.

Mason MacklemHead of ML/AI at Oooh

At Chomp, Matt became the first designer I saw use new tools to consistently deliver high-quality work. He handled everything from user flows and finished screens to interactive prototypes and working code, often independently. What stood out most was his judgment: he knew how to use these resources to explore ideas and move faster, always keeping the end user in mind.