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A few years into the AI boom, its clear that designers can rely on AI for some things. It can automate tedious tasks in Photoshop that once took up precious time. It can generate images on command (quality be damned!). It can schedule a meeting, respond to an email, and take notes on a Zoom call. But for all the hype, we know that AI isnt a silver bullet for the real problems creatives face. Far from it. So we wondered: When it comes to design and creative work, in a blue-sky scenario, what do todays design leaders wish AI would actually take care of for them? We asked nine great designers that very question, and got back some interesting answers. Their answers, seen below, reveal more than productivity hacks. They are a prism into the pain points of a modern design practice, and a view of how some of the best minds in design are thinking about AI. Pum Lefebure, cofounder and chief creative officer, Design Army 1. Dream Harvester: An AI that records my dreams and subconscious visions while I sleep, then turns them into usable moodboards, storyboards, or campaign concepts the next morning. 2. Taste DNA Engine: AI that learns your creative fingerprint so deeply it can filter endless options, then only show ideas that match your intuitionlike your own inner taste amplified. 3. Multidimensional Story Weaver: You give it one idea and AI spins it simultaneously into a film, song, sculpture, VR world, fragrance, and fashion lineall cohesive, all connected. [Source Images: Westend61/Getty Images, Eugene Mymrin/Getty Images, Stefan Grau/Getty Images, Photobank2/Getty Images, PromesaArtStudio/iStock/Getty Images Plus] Sara Vienna, chief design officer, Metalab Everyone says they want AI to take away the busywork, and of course I agree. But I want to push it further. I wish AI could act less like a task runner and more like a thought partnera thought partner that I actually trust with context and nuance. Point out the edge cases, flag accessibility issues without watering everything down, remind me when Im stretching myself too thin, even help me recognize the milestones that matter in the lives of people around me. Because we’re living in a sea of sameness where anyone can vibe code and ship something, the quality bar is so low. But is it good? Is it new? Does it deserve to exist? Thats the gap I want AI to help close, not just speed up production, but raise the bar on quality and meaning. Jessica Walsh, CEO, founder and creative director, &Walsh Join meetings for me? I know thats not great to say, but I find that when I’m in meetings all day, it takes a toll on my creativity . . . yet I know how important it is to be present for our clients. The more obvious answerhandling all the financial aspects of the business, like accounting, invoicing, forecasting, etc. For any creative agency owner, it can be a huge creative time suck to constantly think about. I also think there could be a much better system for archiving our work and project learnings so that anyone who touches those projects in the future has access to them in a really easy-to-understand way. After leading an agency for more than 15 years with a ton of repeat clients, were always looking to optimize this, and I think AI could integrate here in some really exciting ways Aaron Draplin, owner, Draplin Design Co. I will say it’s already doing exactly what I would have really ever hoped and dreamed that it would ever do, which is just that generative fill thing in Adobe. The idea that if I have a vertical image that’s given to me and I have to make it into a square, I can just do a couple clicks for that generative fillit’s not crossing an ethical line at that point. It’s just filling in dead space. That’s amazing, because I would have had to do that myself through trickery and fades and gradients and bullshits and things and stuff. Now that thing can go do it that quick. Gui Seiz, director of design, Figma My biggest wish for AI is to hold on to context and intent the same way a good collaborator does. I want to see AI shift from a productivity hack to a genuine thought partner in the creative process. It should track the intent behind decisions, suggest course corrections when I veer off track, and help me stay in flow. The goal isnt just to work faster, its to work with clarity and help designers navigate the messy parts of the process: the ambiguity, the feedback loops, the gap between rough sketch and refined product. Where it gets interesting is when AI really remembers your creative journey across projects, it can start connecting dots you can’t see. Maybe it surfaces a discarded approach from months ago that suddenly fits your current work, or reveals patterns in your decision-making that point toward unexplored directions. Leta Sobierajski, partner, Wade and Leta I’m hyperconscious of how utilizing AI is shortening my thought process. And while it is enjoyable to embrace cut corners and shortcuts of, say, writing an artist statement or summarizing a brief, I’m a bit terrified by its ability to think more succinctly than I do and automate the processes that have led me to become the creative person that I am today, no matter how grueling they have been. A benefit to the way I work is that my interpretations are never black or whitefollowing an artistic practice is about the meandering and the daydreaming, and with the use of AI that magic may be depleted. So, clearly I’m trying to avoid it for any high-level thiking and writing, as this dependence feels like a gradual dulling of a sharp knife. That said, I’d appreciate it more if it served me a sandwich every so often when I forget to eat, or if perhaps it could remove me from my chair when I’ve sat for too long to encourage me to go enjoy the weather instead. [Source Images: Westend61/Getty Images, Eugene Mymrin/Getty Images, Stefan Grau/Getty Images, Photobank2/Getty Images, PromesaArtStudio/iStock/Getty Images Plus] Giorgia Lupi, partner, Pentagram My blue-sky scenario would be an AI model that reduces the labor of tedious tasks, allows us to test ideas faster, but does not erase the important moments of frustration, collaboration, redirection, and happy accidents in the design process, as that is ultimately what brings the language of design to life. But I think there are important considerations to be made. First of all, when you ask about how AI can be used in the design process, you would likely get different answers from a design director than you would from a hands-on designer who might see a time-saving benefit to AI-powered visual modeling tools. And secondly, although I see value in continuing to explore what AI can do for the field, I still have open questions: Can the shortcuts made possible by AI lead to similarly valuable designs? Do these shortcuts preclude designers from important processes and experiences? Is there a way that AI can be used to eliminate tedium without necessarily informing the visual outcome? Without AI, whether you design alone or with a team, the designs detours, loose experimentation, happy accidents, and outright mistakes all lead to a unique result. As much as Ive enjoyed generative AI in the early days, lately my experience has been marked by frustration, as AI agreeably translates my requests into outcomes that feel like the result of a very different process that is neither collaborative nor solely mine, which is what I am reflecting on these days. When I think about why our clients come to us, it is to transform their stories, ideas, and brands into visual languages that people can connect with. For me, that still means finding the human element. No two designers will craft the same solution for a project, and the beauty in this is that a designers work so uniquely reflects their own perspective. I do not want the integration of AI, with its specific training and incentive to please, to result in a great flattening of design, where well-worn algorithmic decisions make everything look the same. Forest Young, executive director of design, FundamentalCo In a blue-sky scenario, a designer would never need to wait to be the recipient of a mediocre briefone that reeks with a desperate hunger for relevance. She could scrape the subreddits for unmet needs, painful experiences, and problems worth solving, for communities that she felt a kinship with, and design a solutiona brand, a product, an experience with an inspired sense of autonomy and empathy. In short, designers should not believe the hype, but instead [they should] believe in themselves. We must endure the torrent of efficiency-laden rhetoric until we reach an equilibrium, and discover a way to harness this technology to capacitize; to imagine beyond new skins of things to new things altogether. As industries furiously build on top of identical infrastructures and de facto research implications, unique expression will become a peerless signature. Self-assured designers empowered by AI will drive world-building, product visions, and MVPs, as well as unforeseen form language. Like any worthwhile growing pains, we must place a wager on who we can become beyond who we once were. [Source Images: Westend61/Getty Images, Eugene Mymrin/Getty Images, Stefan Grau/Getty Images, Photobank2/Getty Images, PromesaArtStudio/iStock/Getty Images Plus] Brian Collins, cofounder, CollinsImagine if every deck, doc, and post of yours stays on-brand. Not because you had to police them all to death, but because the brand itself is living and defending its own borders like a benevolent nightclub bouncer.If AI helps the scaffolding hold itself up, we get to spend our energy on the big swingsthe ideas, the products, the campaigns no ones ever seen beforewhile the system keeps the everyday stuff from collapsing into chaos. The dream, the way I saw it, was never to sit in front of a drafting table for three days adjusting kerning by hand. That wasnt noble. That was carpal tunnel.The dream for designers was to have a creative system that keeps running when youre asleep or sulking. To have a collaborator who has ideas faster than you can write them down, and keeps yours intact from the moment they leave your desk to the minute they appear on a screen, in a store, or in someone’s home. Charles Eames warned us, Never delegate your understanding. Fine. Dont. But now you can delegate everything else and watch it go.
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E-Commerce
Thinking forward is an automatic process. Cause, then effect. Input, then output. A to B. It feels logicaland normal to start with a conclusion, then find justification around it.But we can always take our thinking a step further. Sometimes, the best way to get the answers you want is to think backwards. Its called mental inversion. Turn the whole thinking process upside down. As the great algebraist Carl Jacobi said, Invert, always invert. Put another way, What would guarantee I fail at X?” is a better question than How do I achieve X? Most people focus on the obvious process because the brain doesnt like to think through ugly pitfalls. Starting from B to A helps you avoid the results you dont want. Its one of the most powerful tools I use to think clearly. To turn your decision-making process upside down, start from the back. Thinking backwards works because it forces you to reflect on what may be missing. The human brain is wired to save energy. It wants quick answers. Slowing down to see the full picture helps you cover all the basics of your decision-making process. Inversion helps you ask better questions. It can improve your clarity. Psychology research backs this up. A study in Cognitive Science showed that framing problems in reverse helps people make fewer errors in judgment. It works because it breaks default thinking patterns. It slows you down just enough to think more deliberately. The antidote to mental fog Clarity disappears in abstraction. If I try to think through every possible positive outcome, I get overwhelmed. But if I ask, Whats the dumbest mistake I could make here? I suddenly see the risk clearly. When I want to be productive, I dont just make a to-do list. I make a not-to-do list. Thats mental inversion. It opens up a whole perspective Im missing. Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu has said, To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, remove things every day. When I write, I dont just think about everything I should include. I also look for what to cut. What confuses the reader? What slows them down? I try to remove what makes the post unreadable. And try to get rid of that. Inversion works because subtraction is often more effective than addition. It applies to almost every area of life.In his book, The Bed of Procrustes, author Nassim Taleb writes, Knowledge is subtractive, not additivewhat we subtract (reduction by what does not work, what not to do), not what we add (what to do). Think like a contrarian Reversing your thinking also trains you to be mentally independent, assuming the opposite of what you believe and testing it. It reveals hidden assumptions. Dont just look for whats true. Look for what could be false. You dont always need a new good idea. Sometimes you just need to clear out the bad ones. Look at opposites. Always invert. Indeed, many problems can’t be solved forward, says philanthropist and investor Charlie Munger. By exploring the worst, you can unlock the best. When in doubt, reverse. Dont just pursue outcomes. Find the blind spots people normally ignore. Sometimes the fastest way forward is to look backward first. How to apply inversion in life If you are stuck on big, knotty questions, invert. How do I find happiness? is vague. Instead, ask, What are the specific, proven actions that make me miserable every single time? For me, its skipping quality sleep, isolating myself, and overthinking. If life satisfaction is what you want, dont just ask, How do I live a happy life?” The more helpful question is, What makes my life miserable? List those things, and get rid of them first. Is it a specific experience in your relationship? Poor health or lack of purpose? Be specific. Detail the things that make you unhappy. Now try avoiding them. Its a precise way to eliminate everything draining your soul. For good health, avoid everything that makes your body worse off over the long term. Bad sleep, ultra-processed food, no exercise, sedentary lifestyle. Think through how people ruin their health. Dont start with what should I do? Start with what habits destroy health? Get rid of those first. Subtraction before addition. To improve your social relationships, spend less time with your connections who drain you. Career benefits If you want to apply inversion to your career, think about what people do that hinders their careers. Complacency. Refusal to adapt or learn new skills. Over-promising and under-delivering. Avoid those traps. You dont need complex systems. You need fewer blind spots. Inversion applies everywhere. In business, you can focus on what would make your new project an absolute failure in record time. The answers will be clear. Ignore your customers. Spend money you dont have on things you need. Assume youre the smartest person in the room. Dont validate your idea. Be inconsistent. Start with your anti-checklist. Your actual plan becomes the inverse of that list. Listen obsessively. Be ruthlessly frugal. Test everything. Be more consistent on what moves the needle. Seek smarter advisors. The path forward becomes clear from the list of things to avoid. Inversion gets rid of mental traps, shows you what matters, and stops you from making the same thinking errors. If you want to think clearly, start thinking backwards.
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E-Commerce
Halloween candy shoppers who bought Reese’s pumpkin-shaped candy said they felt tricked when the picture on the outside packaging didn’t exactly match the treat inside. They were so upset, in fact, that they filed a lawsuit in late 2023 seeking $5 million in damages. Now a judge has dismissed their claims. At issue is Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins, whose wrappers show an image of a pumpkin-shaped candy with a jack-o’-lantern face carved into the chocolate outer layer. In reality, the chocolate inside is faceless. In a class-action suit filed in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Florida, plaintiffs claimed Reese’s candy wrappers were deceptive. According to court documents, plaintiffs thought “the product contained a cute looking carving of a pumpkin’s mouth and eyes as pictured on the product packaging” and said they would not have made the purchase had they known the chocolates would not actually feature those decorative details. [Images: USDC/Middle District of Florida] Reese’s maker the Hershey Co. didn’t buy it. The confectioner noted the Halloween-themed packaging also included images of uncarved pumpkin chocolates and a disclaimer reading “decorating suggestion” to indicate the carvings were an idea to try yourself. The class-action suit claimed the “decorating suggestion” disclaimer was printed in tiny letters on the back and thus inadequate, but a judge didn’t agree and wrote that these consumers ultimately got what they were after: edible candy. “Plaintiffs paid for a consumable good, and in return, they received a delicious, edible Reese’s product,” Judge Melissa Damian wrote in her order granting a motion to dismiss on September 26. “Plaintiffs have failed to allege facts demonstrating a concrete injury.” It’s common for packaged foods to include disclaimers like “enlarged to show texture” and “product may not appear exactly as shown” for exactly this reason. No, your Cheerios aren’t actually that big, and no, your Reese’s pumpkin-shaped peanut butter cup doesn’t come pre-carved. For Hershey, which accounts for some 36% of the U.S. chocolate market, according to PitchBook data, these disclaimers are a way to guard against frivolous lawsuits when the company wants to use something other than ultrarealistic product images on its packaging. Like a box of cake mix that shows a picture of a finished cake on the outside, the Reese’s wrapper wasn’t showing what the candy looked like upon opening it, but what it could look like after some DIY carving. For those who can’t bear to eat a pumpkin Reeses without a jack-o-lantern grin, the message here is clear: You’re better off with a toothpick and some creativity than a multimillion-dollar lawsuit.
Category:
E-Commerce
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