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Eve Schade

Product Engineer & HCI Researcher

Building user-facing systems from research insight to production.

About Me

I built my first PC to run OpenSUSE 10.2 in 2006. Learned by breaking things and figuring out how the pieces fit together. I ran Linux tutorials on YouTube for a while and have been self-hosting servers since 2012. Still do.

At some point, understanding how systems work stopped being the goal; building things people use became the goal. That carried me through a PhD in HCI, first-authored papers at CHI, and building MapUncover from a research concept to 10K+ users. Lately, that means applied AI and conversational interfaces, turning lab ideas into production systems.

Outside of work: drone photography, multimodal travel and urban exploration.

Expertise

Programming

Python, Dart/Flutter, Java, TypeScript/JavaScript, C#, R

Product

Product Strategy, Agile (Scrum), Entrepreneurship & Venture Building

Research

User Research, Usability Testing, Experimental Design, Qualitative & Quantitative Analysis, UI/UX Design

Data & Infrastructure

Docker/Podman, Git, CI/CD, Cloud (GCP/AWS), NoSQL/SQL/Vector Databases

Selected Projects

Research prototypes developed into production applications

HSG HCI Lab • 2024–2025

A customizable multimodal conversational tour guide for autonomous vehicle passengers, supporting location-aware engagement and spatial learning.

  • Designed and implemented a multimodal conversational user interface combining voice input, touch, and real-time map synchronization.
  • Architected event-driven pipeline: continuous speech transcription → multi-layered LLM intent detection and data extraction → response generation → text-to-speech
  • Evaluated in a 270° lab simulator (n=12): UEQ-S 1.10, NASA-TLX 32.4%, 67% would choose AI over human driver, 3.3 landmarks recalled per route.
FlutterGPT-4oOpenAI TTSVision AIMapbox
Startup • 2023–2026

Gamified exploration app using fog-of-war mechanics and social leaderboards to motivate real-world discovery.

  • Scaled from CHI 2023 research prototype to production app handling 10K+ active users.
  • Designed core gamification and engagement systems driving retention and daily usage.
  • Architected full-stack infrastructure: Flutter client, backend services, cloud hosting, CI/CD.
  • Managed privacy-preserving data architecture and global production operations.
FlutterNoSQL/SQLGCPDockerPostgresRedisCloudflareMaplibre
Multilingual RAG Chatbot
PhD Lab • 2025

Multilingual RAG Chatbot

An end-to-end multilingual RAG system for studying algorithmic information exposure.

  • Built the full RAG pipeline: ingestion, embedding, vector storage, retrieval, and LLM generation.
  • Designed a dual-interface study with Langfuse observability across three languages.
PythonLangchainGPT-4oQdrantCohereLangfuse
ICAD • 2021

A spirit level mobile application that uses sonification to provide detailed real-time auditory feedback on spatial orientation. Designed for accessibility, allowing visually impaired users and those working overhead to level surfaces entirely by ear.

  • Led cross-platform Flutter development for iOS and Android, UI/UX design, and project website.
  • Integrated PureData to synthesize real-time auditory feedback mapping phone tilt angles to sound.
  • Co-authored the academic research paper (ICAD 2021).
FlutterDartPureDataFigma
Publications

Peer-reviewed research

Multimodal Conversational Tour Guide for Passenger Engagement and Spatial Learning in Robotaxis

Manuscript Under Review

E. Schade

Describing Explored Places through OpenStreetMap Data

CHI 2025

E. Schade, G. Savino, J. Niess, J. Schöning

Traffic jam by GPS: A systematic analysis of the negative social externalities of large-scale navigation technologies

PLOS One 2024

E. Schade, G. Savino, Y. Gunal, J. Schöning

MapUncover: Fostering Spatial Exploration through Gamification in Mobile Map Apps

CHI 2023

E. Schade, G. Savino, J. Niess, J. Schöning

Experience

End-to-end product engineering and research.

MapUncover

Founder & Lead Developer

Sep 2023 – Present

St. Gallen, Switzerland

  • Architected and developed the location-based platform end-to-end in Flutter: app architecture, backend services, cloud infrastructure, CI/CD, and analytics.
  • Designed core interaction flows, gamification mechanics, and location-aware features with a focus on usability, retention, and engagement.
  • Secured startup funding (Startfeld, Startup@HSG) through competitive pitching, and am currently growing a global user base.

University of St. Gallen

Doctoral Researcher

May 2022 – Dec 2025

St. Gallen, Switzerland

  • Led HCI research on navigation technologies and AI-mediated information systems, spanning system design, controlled user studies, and statistical evaluation.
  • Published first-authored work at ACM CHI and PLOS ONE; developed interactive prototypes and demos for academic and industry audiences.
  • Taught Algorithms and Data Structures and mentored student theses throughout the doctoral program.

ZMML - Center for Multimedia in Higher Education

Full-Stack Web Developer

Mar 2018 – Feb 2022

Bremen, Germany

  • Developed 11 of 13 interactive educational tools (JavaScript/TypeScript, PHP), from early prototypes through UX iteration and production implementation, including a dynamic SVG-based navigation interface.
  • Led migration from Adobe Animate to modern web frameworks, refactoring and modernizing the legacy codebase.
Education

Academic background in Computer Science and HCI

University of St.Gallen

Ph.D. (defended) Computer Science (HCI)

May 2022 – Dec 2025

St. Gallen, Switzerland

Disputation defended successfully in Nov 2025. Formal degree conferral on 18.09.2026. Grade: 5.4/6.0

University of Bremen

M.Sc. Computer Science

Oct 2019 – Apr 2022

Bremen, Germany

Grade: 1.3 (≈ 5.7/6.0 Swiss)

University of Bremen

B.Sc. Computer Science

Oct 2015 – Sep 2019

Bremen, Germany

Grade: 2.0 (≈ 5.0/6.0 Swiss)

Volunteering

Mensch und Computer 2023

Web & Design Co-Chair

Sep 2022 - Sep 2023

Rapperswil, Switzerland

Handled the conference's web presence and design, managed content, and public relations.

MobileHCI 2023

Student Volunteer

Oct 2023

Athens, Greece

Supported conference operations and assisted attendees.

Get in Touch

Open to opportunities.

St. Gallen, Switzerland · Central European Time (CET)Open to relocate. Willing to travel for hybrid roles.