Design: Artificial Intelligence Design

In this month’s edition of Ask UXmatters, our panel of UX experts discusses how UX design for artificial intelligence (AI) applications differs from designing a traditional application. A panelist warns the questioner about the dangers of over-relying on artificial intelligence instead of defining a product that truly meets users’ needs.

Our experts then consider the role of User Experience in the creation of AI applications—especially those that rely on machine learning (ML). Their discussion ranges from the importance of user advocacy, the value of doing user research, how to avoid bias, defining high-quality training data, transparency to users, and gaining user trust by ensuring that the user feels in control of an AI application. This column concludes with a brief discussion of the need for UX design best practices for AI applications. Read More

Does hearing “Do you want fries with that?” change if a robot says it?

Today, companies are trying to answer the question of how artificial intelligence (AI) will transform the face of their user experience. They’d better hurry: 78 percent of businesses plan to implement AI or virtual-reality solutions by next year—or have already implemented them.

Their hope? That this paves the way toward better user experiences.

What will top-tier interactions look like in a few years? Current research in this area might provide some idea: an MIT Technology Review report found that automated systems already resolve between 25 and 50 percent of today’s customer inquiries, and this number will only grow. Read More

At networking and business events, I often get asked about where I think user experience is going. A common theme that has emerged during these conversations is the sense that some of the latest trends in software—such as robotic process automation (RPA) and artificial intelligence—may do away with the need for UX design. While I understand the overarching fear of this perceived threat to UX designers’ livelihood, I find this very human fear ironic given what the worry is about. People often fear what they don’t quite understand and, certainly, the general hoopla about robots taking over human’s jobs breeds much fear and misunderstanding.

However, our guiding principle should always be: When we, as humans, use a product, we should not have to adapt to the technology. Instead, technology should adapt to us. A product that does this successfully is well designed. To create such well-crafted experiences, companies will need UX designers more than ever. Good design does not just happen. In actuality, the introduction of a new technology has no bearing on the validity and continued value of a mature design process. Read More