Where AI is failing design systems, and where we are failing AI
How much instability, lack of quality, or impermanence can we tolerate in our tools?
Browse Archives
A small change to improve browsers for keyboard navigation
Too bad most websites nowadays don't use links for navigation and actions. Here's a fix.
The history of themeable user interfaces
A full-ish history of user interfaces that can be themed to meet the opportunities and constraints of the time.
Redefining ‘human in the loop’
A practical framework for designing human-AI oversight that actually works.
Rethinking applications for AI
With every new technology platform, the concept of an application shifts. Now with AI it's happening again.
The national design studio is a scam
Why president Trump’s appointment of AirBnB co-founder Joe Gebbia as “Chief Design Officer” of the United States is a sickening travesty.
Should every country have a design minister?
Why national design policies and even design ministers could reshape our collective future.
A notional design studio
A closer look at the USA's recent announcement of the “America by Design” initiative.
Mcbroken
This dev reverse engineered McDonald's internal API and is placing orders every minute to figure out which locations have a broken ice cream machine.
Why visual journalism is so slow
Tracking every hour of a typical project to uncover the biggest time drains and share insights on how to speed things up.
Doing great design requires detail obsession
Every good piece of design has at least one detail that is the “key” to unlocking an understanding of how it works.
AI isn’t design’s biggest problem
Most AI output has a bland sameness, but that also sounds like a lot of contemporary graphic design. Is AI a chance to break free?
Quick dark mode toggles
A browser-level feature of being able to toggle between light and dark mode.
Mushroom color atlas
Explore the colorful universe of fungi through the spectrum of colors from dyeing with mushrooms.
Why designing terrible solutions makes you a better designer
Applying the anchoring effect to design practice.
Designing for ephemerality
The fundamental design challenge, then, is not just about creating useful software. It’s about designing for ephemerality.
Introducing Areal, Are.na’s new typeface
An interview with Dinamo’s Johannes Breyer on the custom Arial “revival” typeface.
The broken promises of Substack
Substack promised independence, but has evolved into another platform playing the same game as everyone else.
The kid should see this
Smart videos for curious minds of all ages: science, art, nature, animals, space, technology, DIY, food, music, animation, and more.
The illusion of alignment
How cultural norms like politeness, power imbalance, and rushed decision-making lead to fragile consensus in projects.