"Those who follow me on LinkedIn may have gotten the impression that I'm against AI. Nothing is further from the truth. What I'm really against is the notion that you can't do design without AI so you either learn AI or you're doomed. Using AI is of course useful for designers. But so is knowing how to use Figma and I put both of those in the same bucket of tactical skills."
"Can you work as a designer without being proficient in Figma? Absolutely. In fact, some of the best designers I know rarely even touch Figma. Yet they deliver several times their salary in value for the companies they work for. How come? The same goes for AI. Now, AI tools cover a spectrum of functions (as does Figma) so, if we are to do a fair assessment of its relevance, we need to break it down into categories."
AI is not required to practice design; proficiency in AI is a tactical skill similar to knowing Figma. Using AI benefits designers, but mastery of core design capabilities enables high-value contributions even without frequent use of specific tools. Some top designers rarely use Figma yet deliver returns far exceeding their salaries. AI tools vary across functions and should be evaluated by category rather than lumped together. By late 2025 most AI tools fell into two groups: glorified summarizers, which often perform poorly, and vibe-coding assistants. Vibe-coded output should not be deployed to production without rigorous review.
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