Edgeworx Cloud Platform

Edgeworx Cloud originated from IoFog, an open-source command-line tool designed to create ad-hoc edge networks. However, its complexity limited accessibility to expert developers. The mission was clear: democratize edge computing for a wider developer audience.

I served as Chief Design Officer and ultimately the senior-most product leader at Edgeworx, overseeing product strategy, design, and execution across multiple products. Over four years, I led initiatives that transformed Edgeworx Cloud and drove growth in edge computing solutions.

Highlights

My Role: Product owner + lead designer
  • 700 accounts created
  • 10x increase in edge projects
  • Expanded market
  • Improved sprint reliability
  • Maintained investor trust
  • Founder freed for critical work

Before

Edgeworx Cloud began as complex command-line tools that required expert installation, often taking over an hour and resulting in a high failure rate.

After

I led the design and strategy for Edgeworx Cloud and related projects, simplifying onboarding and improving usability, growing the user base to over 700 accounts with multiple development teams. Key features were implemented to address pain points and enhance the overall experience.

Starting with UX design and product strategy, My role evolved to include product ownership, ensuring the delivery of a full suite of products. Collaborating with cross-functional teams, I designed and managed multiple projects launching critical features, and driving product success.

Key Projects

  • Edgeworx Cloud portal
  • EGX AI Explorer
  • Dwell Time Analyzer
  • Developer docs + guides
  • Darcy Cam hardware UX

Challenges

Through interviews, observation, and analytics, I uncovered critical business and user challenges that shaped our strategy moving forward.

Business

  • Narrow audience—product was difficult for non-experts
  • Lacked features to justify paid subscriptions, limiting revenue potential
  • No plug-and-play edge hardware, creating adoption barriers
  • Shifting priorities led to unreliable releases and team frustration

Users

  • Command-line tools and outdated docs made setup difficult
  • Cloud developers didn’t see value until after trying the hard way
  • Few developers registered or deployed new edge devices
  • Building and deploying edge apps was unclear and complicated

SOlutions

Make edge accessible for cloud devs

Friendly Portal

I led the design, collaborating with founders   engineers, to create a portal based on ioFog. We integrated SaaS features like easy onboarding, collaboration tools, and reliable uptime, making it both accessible and competitive with other paid platforms.
Jumpstart their edge AI development

Starter apps+Docs

I designed sample apps to showcase edge AI use cases and give developers downloadable code they could tweak. I also collaborated with our cloud lead to re-architect the doc site for scalability and created guides that provided a clear developer roadmap.
Reduce hardware friction

Edge camera UX

I led the hardware UX design, ensuring seamless setup and software integration. I also managed the industrial design, hiring Ammunition Design and gathering feedback to deliver a versatile, user-friendly product.
Improve team delivery efficiency

Refined process

As product owner, I created and maintained product roadmaps, turning goals into milestones. Working with the scrum master, we improved sprint reliability, reduced task-switching, and ensured more predictable, bug-free code delivery.

Impact

700 accounts created

Grew user base from a dozen to over 700, with 5 client teams actively developing.

10x increase in Edge projects

Drove significant growth in developer engagement with a 10x increase in projects created.

Expanded market

Broadened the market from a small base of edge developers to a much larger group of cloud developers.

Improved sprint reliability

Reduced sprint delays from 80% to 20%, delivering more consistent results.

maintained Investor trust

Consistent communication + structured planning assured investors, ongoing funding despite shifting leadership focus.

Founder freed for critical work

Process improvements allowed the founder to focus on creating new patents and technologies, driving innovation.
Testimonial
“[Edgeworx] excludes all needs for proxies, dynamic dnses and etc. … to route data to a virtual machine which is contained in another virtual machine without this tool is hell. This feature really enlightens the work of iot developers.”
- Bahman
Testimonial
“Edgeworx made our edge node configuration and management easy, and allowed us to focus our efforts on developing the software necessary to run our lab operations, rather than just focus on managing our edge nodes!”
- Erin Lewis, Senior Software Engineer, Strateos
Testimonial
“Our developers were able to go from concept to pilot in just a few weeks. This would not have been possible before [Edgeworx]”
- Carl Krupitzer, Cofounder and CEO of ThingLogix
Testimonial
“Edgeworx is a pillar of the Eclipse Edge Native community and an important participant in the Eclipse ioFog project. On its own, ioFog is a great solution for container orchestration at the Edge. I am excited to see how it provided a solid foundation for Edgeworx Cloud and hope the platform will see commercial success. This is open source at work.”
- Carl Krupitzer, Cofounder and CEO of ThingLogix

Process Overview

A range of user-centered design techniques and collaborative tools were employed to quickly distill complex information and ensure clear communication across teams—from engineering and support to fellow executives and investors. This ensured alignment and drove progress across all levels.

Process Examples

Analytics-Driven Improvements

I  collaborated with our customer support and engineering leads to implement key analytics, revealing friction points and driving critical product improvements.
  • Established key metrics: accounts created, projects launched and edge apps deployed.
  • High account/project creation but low node creation lead to “virtual nodes” featured, improved docs and guides
  • Identified app creation struggles, prompting improvements to developer docs and sample apps.
  • Mapped the user journey, pinpointing conversion roadblocks.

User research and insights

I led several user research initiatives across all products, including user testing and gathering insights. I encouraged cross-functional team participation, sharing best practices for user testing and open-ended inquiry methods, which helped refine our approach to user feedback.
  • Gained insights into different developer types, which helped us create personas and focus on high-value cloud developers.
  • Enlisted team members to actively participate in test sessions, fostering a user-centered mindset across the company.
  • Educated teams on effective user testing methods, ensuring we gathered meaningful and actionable insights.
  • Provided detailed journey diagrams highlighting pain points and opportunities.

Roadmap development + Milestone planning

As the Chief Design Officer and lead product strategist, I created and managed roadmaps across all of our products, including our flagship Edgeworx Cloud, sample apps, and other projects. These roadmaps brought clarity to the team and external partners, guiding development efforts, linking feature interdependencies, and ensuring alignment with long-term goals.
  • Defined strategic roadmaps for all products, aligning them with company objectives and investor expectations.
  • Mapped feature dependencies to improve cross-functional collaboration and ensure milestone consistency.
  • Enhanced product delivery by providing clear timelines and reducing shifting priorities.
  • Used roadmaps as strategic communication tools, building trust and transparency with investors and partners.
  • Drove consistent on-time product releases, contributing to a 10x increase in developer adoption and project success.

Investor Presentations + Strategic Communication

I led the creation of investor presentations, distilling complex product strategies and roadmap progress into clear, compelling narratives. My presentations ensured continued investor confidence, driving funding and strategic alignment across all company initiatives.
  • Presented product roadmaps and milestones to investors, providing clarity on development progress.
  • Simplified complex technical details into strategic insights, enhancing investor trust.
  • Delivered clear business cases for product decisions, contributing to ongoing funding and support.

Visual Clarity for complex ideas

As Chief Design Officer and hands-on designer, I created all visual and branding materials, including sales brochures, websites, and investor pitch decks. My visual storytelling clarified complex technical ideas, ensuring our product’s value was understood by diverse audiences, including investors and partners.
  • Simplified complex concepts with clear, engaging visuals that drove investor and customer engagement.
  • Designed all sales and marketing materials, ensuring alignment with our product’s positioning.
  • Combined strategic insight with hands-on execution, delivering visuals that reinforced our innovation narrative.
Read this far? Thanks! I’d love to explore how I can help.
Get in Touch
© 2024 Brian Christensen