Looking Back at 2025, Looking Forward to 2026

Another year down. But 2025 wasn't just about shipping projects—it was about building the foundation for something bigger.

If I had to sum up this year in one sentence: I stopped chasing tools and started building systems.

The Projects That Shaped My Year

Q1: The Railway Reality Check

Started the year working on a Sri Lankan Railway digitization project. Was it my best work? No. But it taught me something valuable: why government entities fail at building better products. Sometimes the most valuable lessons come from watching systems break, not work.

Q2-Q4: Finding My Rhythm

The year picked up with freelance gigs, then landing the US medical healthcare system that's been my main focus through Q3 and Q4. Working on something this established, this complex, forces you to think differently about design.

The Consistent Thread: Patterned AI

From January 1st to today, I've been putting in 5-10 hours weekly on Pattern AI. Small gig, massive learning curve. Image generation, AI workflows, the intersection of design and machine learning this project kept me sharp all year.

The real learning? AI prototyping at speed. I built countless prototypes using v0, Lovable, and Google AI Studio testing ideas, breaking things, learning what works. This wasn't just design work; it was about understanding how AI tools can accelerate the entire creative process.

Byondx: Building the Agency I Wish Existed

Here's the thing about most design agencies: designers don't think, they execute. They do what's asked, nothing more. No over-delivery. No real ownership.

I'm fixing that with Byondx.

This year was about building the system that makes great designers, not just hiring them. The process is the product. Because eventually, I want anyone joining Byondx to go through this system and come out thinking like a designer, not just pushing pixels.

It's not about having employees. It's about having people who think.

Pixel Parlour: The Slow Build

Started Pixel Parlour this year. 20-30 people in the community, 10-15 active members. Not huge numbers, but the momentum was real.

Weekly calls running until 2am. Four-hour design discussions. That's the energy I was looking for.

The problem? People are scared to share. Scared of feedback, scared of being wrong, scared of putting their work out there.

2026 is about fixing that. More webinars, in-house sessions, structured working hours. Pixel Parlour's turning point is coming.

The "Vibe Coding" Evolution

I hate the term "vibe coding" because it sounds like I'm just throwing code at a wall and hoping it sticks. That's not it.

I'm a CSS nerd. I love building things with curves, with personality, with motion. The micro-interactions, the JavaScript touches, Framer Motion this is where design and development blur into something better.

This year I invested in courses (shoutout to Emi l's micro-interaction course) and actually learned the things I'd been faking before. Not just copying, understanding.

The Tool Audit

For years, I kept buying productivity tools thinking they'd solve my problems. A new note-taking app here, a better task manager there. Notion for this, Obsidian for that.

This year I realized: I don't need more tools. I need better processes.

That said, here are the tools that actually earned their place in my workflow:

The Stack:

• Raycast - My productivity backbone

• Central icons - Base icon library for everything

• Claude - AI tool of choice (those MCP servers changed everything)

• Chrome - Back on Chrome, no regrets

• Obsidian - Note-taking that finally clicked

• Super Whisper - Transcription that just works

• Lookaway - Keeping my eyes healthy (because screens are hell)

Built an entire MCP-powered system with Obsidian this year. Whenever I need something, Claude just pulls from my notes. I'll write a full breakdown of that system soon.

Music & Books:

• On repeat: Last Of My Kind

• Reading: Stop Lying to Yourself: 101 Hard Truths to Help You Change Your Life

What I'm Leaving Behind in 2025

• Building multiple portfolios - Stopped rebuilding my personal site. Going minimal. Focus shifts to Byondx's portfolio instead.

• ADPList mentorships - It was good, but 2026 needs tighter focus.

• Tool hoarding - If it doesn't solve a real problem, it's out.

2026: The Plan

For Pixel Parlour: Make people comfortable sharing. Kill the fear. Build the space where feedback makes you better, not scared.

For Byondx: Solidify the system. Document the process. Build the team that thinks, not just executes.

For myself: Stop buying solutions. Build processes. The tools are means, not ends.

2025 was about foundations. 2026 is about building on them.

Not just shipping products. Building systems that make better products inevitable.

Let's see what happens.