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In the podcast, it's emphasized that in working with AI, humans should remember that they are the pilot and AI is the co-pilot. Referring to AI as the co-pilot signifies the human's control over the technology, preventing a sense of victimhood. Understanding this relationship is crucial to avoid fear and effectively utilize AI tools.
The speaker discusses widespread misconceptions about AI, highlighting the challenge of understanding complex technical concepts. Drawing parallels to design elements like patterns, the speaker explains that AI's technical nature makes it difficult for the general public to comprehend, contributing to misconceptions about its capabilities.
A key point revolves around empowering individuals to communicate effectively with AI, emphasizing that speaking the language of machines can be empowering and not limited to developers only. By enabling people to interact with machines in a more human manner, AI tools become more accessible and offer significant productivity benefits.
The episode delves into the concept of AI as a co-pilot for both UX designers and engineers, emphasizing the collaborative nature of working with AI tools. Through examples like GitHub's co-pilot feature in Visual Studio Code, the podcast explores how AI can enhance productivity and creativity while still requiring human guidance and control.
Show notes: https://designbetterpodcast.com/p/john-maeda-ai-design
Today we welcome back John Maeda, who is currently Vice President of Design and Artificial Intelligence at Microsoft. You’re probably familiar with John’s work, but if not, take a listen to Episode 42 of this show, where he talks about the arc of his remarkable career.
In today’s episode, we talk with John about his role at Microsoft, what’s most misunderstood about AI, and his optimistic take on what the future holds for designers who embrace these new tools.
One more thing before we get to the show…if you can take a moment to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, or rate the show on Spotify, that will help us reach new people. Go ahead and hit the pause button right now and leave your review, we’ll wait for you. 😉 Thank you for listening, and thanks for your support.
Bio
John Maeda is an American technologist, designer, engineer, artist, investor, author, and teacher. He is currently the VP of Design and Artificial Intelligence at Microsoft. He’s the author of five books including a gentle intro to AI/ML "How To Speak Machine (Penguin)" and the "Laws of Simplicity (MIT Press)."
John is represented in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, NYC, and the Cartier Foundation, Paris. He’s the first recipient of the White House’s National Design Award for algorithmically-generated visualizations informed by data. Maeda serves on the Board of Sonos and the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.
He has held positions with Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com; the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins; served as president of the Rhode Island School of Design; and began his early career at the MIT Media Lab at the intersection of computer science and visual art. Named as one of the “75 Most Influential People of the 21st Century” by Esquire, Maeda draws on his diverse background as an MIT-trained engineer, award-winning designer, and MBA-community translator to bring people and ideas together at scale.
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