What Artefact does

Artefact is a privately held design and strategy consultancy headquartered in Seattle, Washington, founded in 2006 and operating with 51–100 employees. The firm helps leading organizations bring clarity to complex problems, uncover opportunities for impact, envision meaningful experiences with new technology, and craft products, services, and systems. Its work spans product and UX design, strategy, and innovation consulting, delivered through project-based, multi-disciplinary engagements with enterprise clients and mission-driven organizations.

The firm's underlying methodology is "humanity-centered design," an extension of human-centered design that incorporates systems thinking and long-term societal and environmental outcomes. Supporting this methodology are proprietary tools and frameworks — the Tarot Cards of Tech, Behavior Change Strategy Cards (a 23-card toolkit), and Systems Thinking 101 — that double as content-marketing assets. The firm has also produced notable applied technology artifacts including the LuminOS spatial-computing interface for Magic Leap One, the Traverse blockchain + AI healthcare identity wallet concept, the USAFacts civic data visualization platform, the DreamBox Insights Dashboard, the SCHARP DataSpace open-science research platform, and the PRISM digital experience for Seattle Children's Hospital.

Artefact operates a B2B professional services revenue model with quote-based, project-scoped engagements negotiated per engagement. Its customer base is anchored by Fortune 500 enterprises (Nike, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Adobe, Samsung, Hyundai, Magic Leap) and complemented by healthcare, education, government, and nonprofit clients across the US and globally (USAFfacts, Seattle Children's, Hopelab, Omidyar Network, Splash, DreamBox Learning, SCHARP, Impact Climate Technologies). Go-to-market is enterprise field sales driven by content-led inbound, earned media, and referrals; pricing is not publicly disclosed. In 2024 the firm executed its first disclosed acquisition (Effixis) and in 2026 began co-developing an AI product (ImpactIQ) with Impact Climate Technologies, suggesting a gradual move from pure services toward productized IP.

Name

Artefact

Legal name

Artefact

Website

https://artefactgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Artefact is a Seattle-based design and strategy consultancy that helps Fortune 500 enterprises, healthcare, education, government, and nonprofit clients solve complex problems through human-centered and humanity-centered design, UX, and emerging technology integration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Design and Innovation Consulting Services

NAICS

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Graphic Design Services (54143)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Creative & Experience Design Agencies (Web/App/UX) (MPAAAAAD)

Keywords

• Design strategy consulting
• Product ux design
• Innovation consulting
• Human-centered design
• Emerging technology strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Design and Strategy Consulting: Professional services engagements providing product design, UX design, strategy, and innovation consulting to enterprise clients, government agencies, and mission-driven organizations. Projects typically involve multi-disciplinary teams working on complex challenges over defined engagement periods.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Artefact is a design and strategy consultancy that helps enterprise, healthcare, education, government, and mission-driven clients bring clarity to complex problems, identify opportunities for impact, envision experiences with new technology, and craft products, services, and systems. Offerings span product and UX design, strategy and innovation consulting, supported by proprietary frameworks such as the Tarot Cards of Tech and Behavior Change Strategy Cards, and delivered through multi-disciplinary project teams.

Product overview

Artefact is a design + strategy firm that offers a unified service portfolio centered on product and UX design, strategy, and innovation consulting. Their offerings include core consulting services for helping organizations solve complex problems, plus proprietary tools and resources such as the Tarot Cards of Tech (impact prediction tool), Behavior Change Strategy Cards (behavioral design toolkit), and Systems Thinking 101 (systems mapping guide). These tools are designed to help clients and practitioners think through technology impact, design for behavior change, and approach problems systemically.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Design + Strategy Services
• Tarot Cards of Tech
• Behavior Change Strategy Cards
• Systems Thinking 101

Quantifiable outcome

• Reached 1 million children through Splash WASH stations in India and Ethiopia
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered notable.

• Impact Climate TechnologiesnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 February 2026Developed ImpactIQ, a proprietary AI-powered takeoff platform for commercial HVAC estimating. Artefact collaborated on AI-driven symbol detection, blueprint intelligence, and generative AI capabilities to automate takeoff generation during early project evaluation.
• LabKey SoftwarenotableTechnology or IntegrationPartnered with SCHARP and LabKey Software to design and build the DataSpace, a web tool enabling HIV vaccine researchers to explore data across studies, generate hypotheses, and accelerate discovery through open science.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IDEO: Pioneering human-centered design consultancy headquartered in San Francisco, serving Fortune 500 clients on product, service, and systemic design challenges — the closest direct comparable to Artefact's design + strategy model.
• Frog Design: Now part of Capgemini Invent, Frog is a global design and innovation consultancy that designs products, services, and experiences for major enterprises — directly competing with Artefact on transformational design engagements.
• Huge: Digital experience design agency working with large brands on product design, UX, and digital transformation — comparable client roster and similar mix of design strategy and execution services.
• Smart Design: Product and experience design consultancy serving consumer electronics, healthcare, and finance clients — directly comparable mid-size design firm with overlapping service lines to Artefact.
• Cooper: Product design consultancy founded by the creator of the persona methodology, specializing in digital product and service design for enterprise clients — similar size and product-design orientation.
• Lunar Design: Premium product design consultancy serving consumer electronics, medical, and technology clients with deep hardware/software integration expertise — closely comparable to Artefact's consumer-electronics-focused engagements.
• Teague: Seattle-based design and innovation consultancy with deep aerospace, transportation, and consumer electronics clients — directly comparable given the same geography and overlapping enterprise segments.
• Ziba Design: Portland-based product and brand design consultancy serving consumer and technology clients — comparable mid-size firm with similar methodology-driven, multi-disciplinary approach.
• Method (GlobalLogic): Experience-driven design consultancy (now part of GlobalLogic) serving enterprise clients on digital products and platforms — comparable in service mix, though now operating with much larger backing.
• RKS Design: Psyche-driven human-centered design consultancy working across consumer, healthcare, and social impact — directly comparable given overlapping verticals and similar humanity-centered positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/artefactgroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/artefactgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/artefact
• Instagraminstagram.com/artefactgroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Artefact