Lynk & Co 07
In-car moods app
overview
The Lynk & Co 07 Moods App combines ambient lighting, sound and visual content to create personalised parked-mode experiences.
Working with another UX designer, I led the strategy and interaction design—from defining the concept and experience principles to structuring, prototyping and delivering the app.
Outcome:
Six multi-sensory mood concepts, developed into a production app launched with the Lynk & Co 07 in March 2024.
Role:
UX/UI & HMI Designer
Responsibility:
Strategy and interaction design lead
Scope:
Research · Workshops · Interaction design · Prototyping · Concept evaluation
Timeline:
4 months
Team:
2 UX/UI designers · 3D artist · HMI Chief Designer
Market launch:
March 2024
THE BRIEF
When I joined the Light Experience Team, the brief was deliberately open: explore how displays, ambient lighting and sound could create different moods inside the car.
With no predefined themes or functional requirements, our first task was to define what a “mood” meant as a product experience.
The Chinese market and the car’s use as a personal space while parked or charging shaped the direction.
The experience would connect three surfaces: ambient lighting, interior light panels and the Central Stack Display.
The challenge
Turning the open brief into a viable product required us to define both its emotional purpose and interaction boundaries.
The experience needed to work coherently across lighting, sound and visuals while remaining culturally relevant, intuitive and appropriate for parked-mode use.
01
Emotional direction
Define distinct, useful moods
02
Cultural relevance
Design for the Chinese market
03
Multi-sensory consistency
Align lighting, sound and visuals
04
Interaction boundaries
Keep parked-mode controls simple
Research & Discovery
Working with another UX designer, I combined benchmarking, desk research and input from Chinese colleagues to establish the experience principles.
We examined:
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How existing automotive, media and wellbeing products shaped multi-sensory experiences
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How light, sound and visual rhythm could communicate calm, energy and connection
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How parked or charging time could support relaxation, entertainment and self-expression
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How cultural references influenced themes such as romance, nature, festivals and karaoke
FROM WORKSHOPS TO
MOOD CONCEPTS
To translate the brief into concrete directions, we facilitated three workshops with Lynk & Co employees.
We explored how participants interpreted romance, calm and energy, which sensory cues supported each feeling and where cultural interpretations differed.
The workshops provided directional input—not formal user validation—and informed six mood concepts:
Blossoming Love
Playful, expressive romance
Moonlight Love
Subtle, intimate romance
Clear Mind
alm and mindful recovery
Energy Boost
Upbeat energy and social interaction
Weather Mood
An atmosphere shaped by current weather
Customize Your Own
Personal control over the mood experience
FROM CONCEPT TO INTERACTION DESIGN
Once the six directions were established, we translated them into the app’s structure and interaction model.
Hand-drawn flows helped us define how users would browse moods, select content and adjust individual settings.
We then aligned these patterns with Lynk & Co’s existing Central Stack Display interface, keeping navigation familiar while allowing greater immersion in parked mode.
Familiar browsing and playback conventions reduced the learning curve.
BALANCING PRESETS AND PERSONAL CONTROL
Each preset combined curated lighting, sound and visuals into an immediate, coherent experience. Personalisation controls then allowed users to adjust the content, ambient-light colour and intensity.
We evaluated the concepts in Lynk & Co’s Artificial Reality room, using simulated lighting and sound to assess them at cabin scale. This helped us refine the balance between immersion, control and simplicity before detailed design.
DEFINING THE APP STRUCTURE
Low-fidelity wireframes defined the information architecture and core navigation before detailed UI design.
The primary flow moved from browsing a mood to selecting content, playing it full-screen and adjusting the supporting light and sound.
Persistent controls kept frequently used settings accessible throughout.
Overview of the moods at the top
mini playlist is always displayed here for easy access
Full screen mode
Colour pallette
Choose music or sounds
The ambient light
Choose filter
Choose saturation and contrast
Final High-Fidelity Prototype
The final clickable prototype brought the interaction model and six mood concepts together within Lynk & Co’s existing interface.
Users could browse preset moods, play visual content full-screen and adjust the supporting music, sound and ambient lighting.
start page of the app
swipe to reveal more moods
video playlist
fullscreen view of video
music/ sound playlist
ambient light settings
Videos
blossoming love
moonlight love
clear mind
moonlight love
outcome
The Moods App launched with the Lynk & Co 07 in March 2024, integrating ambient lighting, sound and visual content into one parked-mode experience.
My key contributions:
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Led strategy and interaction design with another UX designer, from early research through delivery
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Turned an undefined brief into six structured multi-sensory concepts
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Defined the app’s information architecture, user flows and interaction patterns
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Used cabin-scale prototyping to refine immersion, personal control and simplicity
LEADERSHIP FEEDBACK
Samuel Wijk
Former HMI and UX Chief Designer at Lynk & Co Design
Read the full recommendation on LinkedIn →
“One of her standout achievements was her work on the Lynk & Co 07 project, particularly in leading the design and development of the Moods App. From initial concept to guiding development, Rita was instrumental in bringing this feature to life.”
