Design Thinking Meets AI: Book Talk & Live Build - #NYTechWeek

AI can write the code now, but who's designing what it builds? Louise Macfadyen, author of the newly released O'Reilly book, Designing AI Interfaces, joins Bethany Crystal for a conversation that starts with a deceptively simple question: What does it mean to design AI-native systems and interfaces? ​

Together they'll explore the philosophy and surprises of designing AI systems, poking at questions like: Who counts as a designer now? What does good taste looks like in a prompt-driven world? What happens when the coding is the easy part? Then they'll put it to the test.

Bethany and Louise will take a design concept from the book and build it live, in real time (using AI), showing what it looks like when design thinking drives the engineering, not the other way around. They'll close with a reflection on what worked, what surprised them, and what it means for anyone building with AI today. ​

Key Takeaways:

- ​Understand the core principles of AI interface design from the author who literally wrote the book on it

- ​Watch design thinking applied live, from concept to working prototype in real time ​

- Rethink your own role: You don't need to be a "designer" to start designing better AI experiences ​

Target Audience:

- ​Product managers, designers, and builders working on AI-powered products who want a sharper design lens

- ​Founders and operators using AI tools daily who want to move from "it works" to "it works well" and understand why the difference matters

- ​Copies of the book, Designing AI Interfaces, will be available for purchase.