Designing AI Experiences People Actually Use

"For decades in SAAS, products reduced ambiguity. Users supplied constrained inputs, and the system handled the output. It's never been Minority Report cinematic, but it was predictable. By providing predictable environments for manipulating data, users learned by moving things, adjusting variables - and the outcome emerged through interaction."

"AI-first interfaces invert that sequence. Now, software asks users to declare intent before exploration begins - to articulate the destination before they hit the road. This is the root of the discomfort - AI represents a redistribution of cognitive labor."

"Writing is the process by which you realize that you do not understand what you are talking about. Importantly, writing is also the process by which you figure it out."

Modern software tools increasingly open with open-ended questions rather than structured inputs, positioning AI as the primary interaction mode. While this appears progressive, it creates discomfort by redistributing cognitive labor. Traditional SAAS products reduced ambiguity through constrained inputs and predictable outputs, allowing users to learn through trial-and-error interaction. AI-first interfaces invert this sequence, demanding users articulate their destination before exploration begins. This assumes clarity that creative work typically lacks. Users discover outcomes through the creative process itself, not before it starts. This fundamental shift in interface design places unrealistic expectations on users to know their goals in advance.

Read at Buzz Usborne