That moment forced us to ask a question we couldn’t ignore: what happens to design and product development when AI can generate concepts faster than we can brief them?
The answer wasn’t to panic. It was to rebuild.
The Choice We Made
We had two options. Compete with AI on speed and iteration – a game we’d lose. Or fundamentally change how we work, where we add real value, and what we actually focus our expertise on.
We chose the second one.
That was more than two years ago now. Since then, we’ve completely adapted our business model, our process, and how we think about what a design and product development studio actually does in 2025.
Here’s What Changed
AI is brilliant at volume. We can now produce 50, 100, 200 different versions of something in the time it used to take to deliver one. That’s not hyperbole – that’s just how it works now.
The feedback loops are faster. The iteration is smarter. The computational grunt work that used to eat up weeks? Gone.
But here’s the thing nobody talks about enough: AI can’t understand user experience. It can’t grasp emotion. It can’t make the judgment calls that actually matter.
Those are human skills. Those are design skills. And if you’re not building your entire approach around those, you’re already falling behind.
What We’re Focusing On
We’ve moved beyond the traditional agency model where you sell time and expertise in return for money. Don’t get us wrong—we still do that. But we’re doing it differently.
We’re being selective about who we work with. We’re only taking on projects where there’s a genuine fit, where we can make a real impact, where the client values what we actually bring to the table.
And increasingly, we’re designing, developing, and launching our own products. That’s where the real evolution is happening.
The Reality Check
AI isn’t coming for our jobs. For a lot of designers, it’s already here.
The ones who’ll thrive aren’t the ones who fear it or ignore it. They’re the ones who’ve already adapted. Who’ve built their teams, their processes, and their business models around what only humans can do.
Emotion. Strategy. User experience. Understanding what people actually need, not just what’s technically possible.
If you’re running a design team, leading an agency, or building products – this matters. This is the fork in the road. Stay ahead of it. Don’t fear it. But absolutely adapt to it.
This is part of our “Let’s Be Frank” series: where we share our genuine views on what’s happening in our industry.
Book a free consultation
