THEY BUILT PRODUCTS WITH ME
Hi, I am Joneil.
Product Designer focused on clarity and real-world use
I was born in Manila, raised in Illinois, and Chicago has been home for a while now. Beijing and Seoul got their own chapter along the way, back when I was studying international relations. Before design, I spent about three years producing podcasts, running 10+ shows and learning what it takes to keep a team, a schedule, and a story together.
Design was the natural next step. Same instinct for structure and story, pointed at products instead of episodes. These days I work end to end: flows, information architecture, design systems, and the small decisions that make software feel less like software.
Most of that has happened inside startups and small teams, where resources are thin, everything moves at once, and everyone wears a dozen hats. I am good at walking into that and making it make sense. Usually that means finding the real problem before anyone builds anything, then designing the thing that actually solves it.
What is
halo studio?
Halo Studio is my independent design practice where I work with clients to bring their product visions to life.
Halo is short for halo-halo, a Filipino dessert whose name literally means "mix-mix."
I believe that great products don't come from design working in isolation. They come from bringing together product strategy, design, engineering, customer insight, and business goals—and finding the right balance between all of them.
The values
behind my work
Curiosity
I dig into why something isn’t working before I design anything. Understanding the problem is most of the work.
Clarity
I make complicated things easy to follow. Structure, flows, and the right words, all doing their jobs.
Adaptability
My path here wasn’t a straight line, and startup work rarely is either. I adjust quickly without losing the thread.






