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I’m a designer who’s worried about AI, but not for the reasons you think.
My personal take on AI as a designer who was doing ML and NLP since 2017
I’m considered quite tech-y for a designer despite my intentional inability to code. My understanding of technologies is very much as shallow as a puddle, but I have multiple puddles forming in my brain as the days go by.
And so, I was very proud to not be part of the mass hysteria on LinkedIn when some designers cried wolf at the possibility of being replaced as GenAI seems to be taking over.
With the value of designers being questioned by most companies, and even by designers themselves, the rise of AI doesn’t quite help with our professional displacement and imposter syndromes.
I don’t consider myself adverse to technology, and I am always as advocate on improving society using tech. My pursuit of new tech like blockchain and dipping my toes into tech partnerships is a small proof of that mindset.
But the whole AI phenomenon brings about a set of concerns. And I’m just gonna vent about it.
People stopped believing in themselves
One of the biggest, most noticeable impact that I’ve witnessed with the rise of AI is the lack of faith people have in themselves to do things for themselves.
AI was meant to assist and help automate ‘simple’ tasks, so humans can go out and do bigger things instead of being stuck with the mundane.
Replace AI with any technology, and that’s basically our pursuit of excellence as a human race. We get machines to do mundane things so we can go figure out a higher meaning to our existence.
And this reminded me of a research I did when I was designing for a pill dispenser machine; the point of that contraption was to help caregivers and patients manage complex chronic medication better so they don’t miss medication or take the wrong medication, which is detrimental to recovery.
One of the patients told me the goal was to be independent and not feel like a burden to the caregivers. He was excited to test out the technology as the machine empowers that independence.
