The topic of ‘artificial intelligence’ is currently preoccupying many people. Some fear the destruction of their developer and designer existence, others are singing hallelujah. Some are completely ignoring the topic. So what does AI mean for product development?
AI is developing into a useful, additional tool for accompanying work. Image retouching, image creation, textual and visual suggestions, relief in the workflow (see image above). So why do we still need a designer or developer?
A tool needs someone to give the order and guide it. Meaning, purpose and need lie with people. AI draws from the pool of what already exists. That may be enough for the average. Enthusiastic AI gurus and consultants generally have no idea of the qualities of the professional fields in question.
The design process is not about producing just any shape. The shape to be developed has ergonomic, technological, production-specific, commercial and, last but not least, cultural constraints. The design wants to achieve something specific. A good and experienced designer not only knows the route, but also the purpose and destination of the journey. His comprehensive (human) expertise creates success.
Good design can fundamentally question and realign goals in a new and more accurate way. It is concentration instead of arbitrariness, clarity instead of disguise, progress instead of reproduction, profound instead of superficial, special instead of ordinary, alive instead of simulating - it is human. And the human is closer to the human being. A good designer touches the mind AND the heart and makes decisions. AI can't do that. A company cannot afford to sink into the sea of AI mainstream and rely on try-and-error.
In my opinion, AI tools will initially become increasingly established as supporting instruments. A great deal of implementation work can be delegated here, allowing the designer to concentrate more on creative potential. Theoretically, however, it is conceivable that human thought processes, including creativity, could actually be simulated by an extremely advanced artificial brain at some point. At the moment, however, this is still science fiction.