AI and Design: Accelerated Execution, Designer's Role

AI tools now produce in seconds what used to take hours, raising questions for a profession that has been structured around execution. The revived debate within teams refers to the Jevons Paradox and the role of the strategic designer.

Generative AI Accelerates Once Time-Consuming Tasks

Generative AI now allows tasks to be executed in record time. Some tools can create a functional prototype in thirty seconds, propose a dozen different versions of mockups, or condense a research transcript. In contrast, it used to take several hours to transform an initial idea into a concrete result, involving layout adjustments and various phases of prototyping.

Two Decades Focused on Execution and Specialized Roles

Over the past twenty years of digital product design, execution often represented the main obstacle. This time-consuming aspect led the industry to organize around specialized creators. Designers measured their output through Figma frames, component libraries, presentations, and detailed user journeys.

Ongoing Tension and an Open Strategic Question

For the past year, this evolution has fueled tension in design critiques, team meetings, and industry discussions. In light of machines' ability to create in just minutes, many are questioning the place of creators. The Jevons Paradox is mentioned as an analytical framework, and an implicit equation is suggested regarding the impact of reduced execution time for designers, although it remains unexplained.