In the era where implementation has become easier, how does UX change?
Core Topic
With the advancement of AI technology greatly lowering the cost of simple 'execution' such as code writing, screen generation, and prototype production, the value of UX design is shifting from simply producing outputs to 'product operation and judgment (Judgment)' that makes the right decisions.
Main Points
- Blurred job-role boundaries
- With the adoption of AI tools, designers are directly involved in development and production, and developers and PMs are also actively participating in the design area, making the boundaries between roles more flexible.
- Instead of the traditional distinction between engineering and design, new role types such as Prototyper, Builder, Sweeper, Grower, Maintainer are coming into focus depending on how problems are solved.
Shifting from output-centered to behavior-centered
- The conventional standardized handoff process is decreasing, and it is changing into a continuous flow of directly testing prototypes with high behavioral fidelity that reflects actual data and rules.
- Beyond simply drawing screens, it has become important to design the behavior of the system such as AI uncertainty, permissions, recovery, and trust.
The ability to leave things out amid the abundance of execution
- Because it is now possible to instantly create dozens of design concepts or features through AI, the ability to subtract—judging 'what not to make' rather than what to make more of—becomes a key competitive advantage (Sweeper).
The senior-junior capability gap issue
- As AI replaces junior-level execution and concept production tasks, opportunities for juniors to gain experience and grow in the past may decrease, and a decoupling phenomenon may occur in which only demand for talent with senior-level judgment increases even more.
UX is not disappearing, but expanding further, and the perspective on problems, contextual understanding, systemic judgment, and responsibility for decision-making that are difficult to replace with tools are becoming the true value of designers.
