About

I'm James Brandt, a design researcher working at the intersection of human–computer interaction (HCI) and human–AI interaction (HAI). I study how people form and sustain relationships with AI—and how design choices make those relationships healthy, legible, and useful over time.

I am a Design Strategist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), where multidisciplinary teams apply human-centered design to national-security challenges and complex sociotechnical systems. At APL I focus on framing problems with users, prototyping, and translating research into actionable decisions for mission stakeholders.

My recent research centers on relational AI. Through Kagami, a platform I developed for my M.S. thesis, I investigate two personalization routes: visible user agency (e.g., co-creating avatars) and covert system mimicry (adaptive linguistic style). This work surfaced the Adaptation Paradox: naive mimicry can feel incoherent and erode connection, while legible, user-driven choices strengthen rapport. See: Agency vs. Mimicry and Synchrony–Stability Frontier.

My background spans interdisciplinary, applied research: a longitudinal NIH R01 study on parent–preschooler nutrition (JMIR protocol), a joint UMN College of Design × Medical School project on human-centered design in cardiac anesthesia pedagogy, and a health-education chatbot for medical trainees. I earned my M.S. in Human Factors & Ergonomics at the University of Minnesota, where the HFE program emphasizes user research, experimental methods, and systems-level design.