DraftKings Predictions - Launching a new market product
DraftKings Predictions is a new app launched during the 2025 NFL season that introduces a real-money prediction market, putting DraftKings in direct competition with platforms like Robinhood and Kalshi. The product allows users to buy and sell shares in outcomes across politics, entertainment, sports, and more.
As the lead product designer on the Financial Platform team, I helped launch this new experience by adapting core financial workflows—depositing, withdrawing, and managing funds—into a newly themed product experience, while addressing technical limitations and user clarity around account separation.
Challenges & Goals
Create a seamless, trust-building financial experience within a newly themed product
Design around MVP limitations without compromising clarity or core functionality
Educate users on the new Predictions “funds”, which is separate from other DraftKings funds
My Role
Product Designer, Platform Team
Responsible for core financial UX across DraftKings’ suite of products
Collaborated closely with PMs, engineers, and product leadership to deliver MVP and post-MVP designs
Re-theming Financial Flows
One of my primary responsibilities was redesigning the deposit and withdrawal flows to align with the new Predictions product theme. DraftKings Predictions introduced a bold visual language centered around volt yellow and darker, high-contrast backgrounds. I adapted the financial experience to this new theme, ensuring that users could still clearly understand their actions—while maintaining clarity, trust, and usability. I adapted components like balance displays and CTA buttons to fit the updated system and ensured accessibility across mobile and web. The end result felt cohesive with the rest of DraftKings but distinct for the new product.
Designing for MVP Constraints
As we shaped the MVP, I worked closely with PMs and engineers to understand the limitations imposed by the compressed timeline and backend constraints. Many standard financial features—like a full balances page or cross-sharing financial information—weren’t feasible at launch. I identified critical UX gaps and designed workarounds that could meet user needs without requiring major engineering investment. This included simplifying certain flows, adjusting expectations through copy, and leaving hooks in the UI for future enhancements. I also documented these trade-offs and shared them with stakeholders to inform our post-launch priorities.
Post-MVP Vision & Stakeholder Alignment
To help align the team on a vision beyond MVP, I created a series of forward-looking mockups that explored how we could evolve the Predictions financial experience. These designs addressed known UX debts and illustrated how we might better unify financial interactions across DraftKings’ ecosystem. I presented these concepts to stakeholders across product, engineering, and design leadership to gain alignment on what a best-in-class experience could look like. This helped position our team not just as MVP executors but as long-term stewards of the product.
Messaging & Wallet Education
Lastly, I focused on educating users about the Predictions Wallet—an entirely separate balance from a user’s main DraftKings account. Early testing revealed confusion around where funds were stored and how they could be moved. I helped design contextual messages, onboarding moments, and in-app tooltips that clearly explained the wallet separation and reassured users that their money was safe. These efforts helped reduce support inquiries and contributed to a smoother onboarding experience during a critical launch period.
Impact
Enable successful launch of the financial platform assets on Predictions during NFL season (in-progress)
Created a scalable design system for financial flows in the Predictions vertical
Reduced early user friction through intentional messaging and clarity around wallets