What is The Role of AI in UX Design?

AI, AI, AI: this term has been everywhere in the past decade. It has infiltrated every corner of the tech landscape, and UX design is no exception. For years, the “AI UX design takeover” narrative has unnerved designers, painting a dystopian future where algorithms usurp human ingenuity. Now, the age of AI-powered UX design is officially here.

Over the past two years, AI has become an integral part of the UX design process. From automating mundane tasks like categorizing user actions or data analysis to prototyping and user testing: most professional UX designers already use AI tools to streamline various aspects of their work. In 2024, the use of AI in UX design will expand exponentially.

Now the question is, will AI replace UX designers altogether in the near future?

Let us get this out of the way: no, it will not. That is because at the core of UX design is empathy. Sure, AI tools can crunch data, generate visuals, and automate a long list of mundane tasks. But, they cannot understand the ever-evolving intricacies of human behavior. They cannot relate to the anxieties first-time users feel when they sign up on an app.

Nor can they craft digital experiences that intuitively resonate with users on a deeper level. Only humans are capable of such nuanced understanding, critical thinking, and creativity. So, AI will definitely not replace UX designers.

However, UX designers who are experts at using AI tools will definitely ‘replace’ UX designers who are not. That is because ‘AI-empowered’ UX designers have freed themselves from the burden of boring & repetitive tasks. They get to focus their ‘human intelligence’ on understanding their users’ needs and then translating them into fitting digital experiences.

Imagine UX designers who can tap into vast data pools, conduct lightning-fast user tests, analyze user heatmaps in real-time, and more: all by themselves. Yep, that is the AI-powered future the world of UX design is headed to and the only way UX designers can make themselves ‘irreplaceable’ in this landscape is by embracing this future, not fearing it.

Here, we will dive headfirst into this thrilling wave of AI-fueled possibilities. We will explore the role of AI in UX design and dissect the toolkit of a new-age, AI-empowered UX designer. Join us as we explore the AI-powered present and future of UX design.

What Is the Role of AI in UX Design?

Long before the term “User Experience” or “UX” was coined by Don Norman in the 90s, professional designers operated in specialized roles: graphic design, web design, industrial design, and so on. Each specialist had a clearly defined role. They used different tools, strategies, and languages. Then, the UX revolution happened and these lines got blurred.

A new breed of designer was born: the multi-skilled UX designer. Adept in product strategy, graphic design, and UX/UI design, these professionals dedicated themselves to understanding user journeys from beginning to end across all touchpoints. AI is fueling a similar revolution in the design world today.

Just as the UX revolution birthed the multi-skilled designer, AI tools for UX design are ushering in a new breed of designers who can:

Collect, Process, and Analyze Large Amounts of Data at Fast Speeds

Gone are the days of manually collecting, processing, and analyzing tons of user data at painstakingly slow speeds. With tools like Hotjar AI & Research AI, UX designers can swiftly aggregate and evaluate vast user datasets with unmatched speed and efficiency.

AI-powered UX research tools excel at uncovering hidden patterns within large data sets that typically escape the human eye. For example:

• Research AI is prolific at spotting trends in specific markets and customer bases.
• Hotjar AI can produce automated summary reports by analyzing large volumes of surveys, user feedback, and web traffic data.
• Data-Robot uses predictive analytics to help designers swiftly build, test, and validate new design prototypes at rapid speed.

All of these tools make it easier for designers to deepen their understanding of user needs/desires and make appropriate user-data-driven design decisions at every step of the design process. No more second-guessing or sifting through endless spreadsheets.

More importantly, they allow designers to quickly identify high-impact areas for design iterations so that they do not waste any of their precious time and creative energy on mistakes. This laser focus translates to faster iteration cycles.

Perform Rapid User Testing & Design Prototyping

Generative AI tools enable designers to test and refine their ideas with lightning speed. These tools transform raw ideas into visual assets and design prototypes in seconds. Designers can use these tools to get instant feedback on how users might interact with their ideas.

UIzard is an AI tool that leverages machine learning to produce functional design prototypes from basic sketches. Simply enter your rough sketches and the AI tool will tap into a host of user data and recent UX design trends to create basic design prototypes.

Mockitt AI can also use predictive analytics to predict user behavior and create suitable prototypes/wireframes.

VisualEyes is another popular AI tool that designers use to expedite their user testing/research processes. It can generate high-quality images/videos from scratch. Users only need to provide text descriptions or reference images for VisualEyes to create premium-grade graphics, illustrations, product mockups, and other visual assets. These assets can be used to simulate user journeys and gather user feedback.

Fronty is another popular AI-based user testing tool that allows designers to generate HTML/CSS code from any image & then use that info to instantly transform static mockups into functional, interactive websites.

Swiftly Bridge All Gaps Between UX Design and UX Content

Au revoir lorem ipsum!

The design-content chasm is closing thanks to AI-powered content creation tools like ChatGPT, Contexta, Writer, and Copy AI. These tools can generate persuasive, SEO-optimized, and conversion-focused text (product descriptions, CTA messages, etc.) at will.

UX designers no longer need to place filler content (lorem ipsum) in their design prototypes. They can integrate clear instructions, helpful messages, and consistent, high-quality copy across their designs, right from the start.

Create Multiple, Data-Driven, and Non-Biased User Personas with Ease

There are many user-focused AI tools that help new-age UX designers fine-tune their designs at rapid speed. For example, Smartone can mine social media chatter, pick up on user sentiments, and then turn that analysis into actionable insights.

UX designers can combine these insights with existing user profiles to create data-driven personas that supercharge the impact of their designs. The creation of multiple, data-driven user personas can also minimize design bias.

Design bias refers to unintentional/intentional influences that distort a design towards certain user groups while disadvantaging others. It can manifest as demographic bias, gender bias, or cultural bias and it can cripple a product’s appeal and usability.

AI tools for UX design like Monkey-Learn can help designers unearth subconscious biases in their copy & imagery choices. The same goes for content governance tools like Acrolinx and Google’s Fairness Indicator which help designers make their design choices non-biased & more inclusive.

Generate UI Elements with Ease

Designing sleek, visually appealing interfaces (UI design) is much easier when you use AI-powered tools like Adobe Sensei. On this tool, designers get direct access to vast libraries of logos, typefaces, etc., that can be easily modified to reflect the brands they are working for.

Designers can also use Fontjoy, an AI tool that uses deep learning to produce unique font combinations at a rapid rate. It is used by designers to optimize their font-related decisions. Colormind is another tool that makes the process of designing UI elements a breeze.

It can analyze large datasets describing user preferences and generate color palettes that are the likeliest to appeal to the target audience. Tools like this enable new-age designers to effortlessly create sleek UIs with visually appealing yet user-centric design elements.

Improve Efficiency and Productivity

Can AI help UX designers escape the ‘project paralysis mode’ and prevent their projects from stalling before they get off the ground? Sure, they can. AI tools like Vas are specifically engineered to translate basic prompts and inputs into detailed wireframes and structured project outlines.

Once Vas translates project ideas into outlines, designers can use automation tools like Brainpool AI which helps designers streamline their workflows. It automates mundane tasks like resizing images as per screen sizes, creating repetitive features, validating data inputs, etc.

Other popular productivity-enhancing AI tools for UX design include Figma’s Fig-Jam AI which can brainstorm ideas, auto-generate design templates, and help designers organize their projects via interactive preparing boards.

As you can glean from these examples, AI’s role in UX design is not about replacing human designers; it is about enhancing their output. AI tools help design professionals streamline their workflows & automate time-consuming tasks. It helps designers spend less time building prototypes or experimenting with design ideas and more time focusing on their users.

That is why many professional UX design teams are already using AI tools in their day-to-day work. How many? According to a recent survey from Adobe, nearly 67% of professional UX designers in the West and in Asian countries use a variety of AI tools to enhance their productivity. Let us assess some of the more popular tools these pros use.

AI Tools for UX Design

We have already discussed some AI tools for UX design in the previous section and if you are a designer, there is a high chance you have already used one or several of them. For example, if you use Adobe products (with the latest updates) you have probably used Adobe Sensei before. This AI-powered feature on Adobe products uses deep learning to help users find suitable visual assets based on basic prompts:

• If you sketch a basic wireframe featuring a sun-soaked beach scene, Sensei will instantly suggest a giant gallery of lively coastal photographs.
• If you want to create sleek product landing pages, Sensei will auto-generate captivating product shots that mirror your brand’s aesthetic.

Sensei is just one example of the countless AI tools new-age professionals use. UIzard is an equally popular all-in-one, AI-powered design tool that can generate interactive prototypes packed with animations and transitions. All users need to do is upload the image/s or design mockups they want to refine: no coding is required.

In-Vision’s built-in ‘Smart, AI-Powered Prototyping’ feature can also transform static mockups into interactive prototypes within seconds. Recently, the uber-popular editing app Figma has launched 40+ AI-powered plugins. These plugins enable designers to effortlessly generate copy, experiment with colors, and create design elements on demand.

For example, Figma’s Auto Layout plugin automates tedious spacing/alignment-related tasks. Similayer, another Figma plugin allows users to select multiple design layers (that share similar properties/components) at once and refine their work more smoothly. You can check out these plugins on the Figma AI website.

Meanwhile, here is an overview of some more uber-popular AI tools for UX design that most design professionals are currently using in 2024:

AI Tool for UX design	Best For	Key Features	How can UX designers use this AI tool
ChatGPT	1. User Research 2. UX Copywriting	– Analyzes chatbot conversations – Detects customer behavior patterns – Generates user personas – Tests design ideas, prototypes – Writes UX copy	– Mine customer feedback from chatbots – Create user personas using chatbot data – Write CTAs, error messages, and all other types of UX copy
Khroma	Generating unique color palettes	– Generates stunning, brand-centric color palettes based on users’ text inputs and image uploads – Customizes different shades of brand colors – Adjusts palettes with sliders and other design elements	– Create palettes based on the mood-boards, design styles, & brand colors – Create unique shades to match the brand’s design language
Fronty	– Image to HTML converter – No code web design & editing tool	– Converts images into HTML code automatically – No code design tool helps users create, edit, and launch sophisticated websites without any coding	– Swiftly convert mockups into semi-functional websites – Create interactive web UX prototypes and keep refining them until major design decisions are finalized
Visily AI	– Wireframing & Prototyping – Collaboration	– Converts text prompts into images – Converts screenshots and image uploads into design templates, editable wireframes, and prototypes – Features an extensive library of UI templates and ‘smart’ design components – Prototypes can be shared with team members	– Designers can kickstart projects using Visily’s pre-designed templates. – Swiftly transform sketches and ideas into interactive design prototypes – Share prototypes with team members for seamless feedback and instant refinement
Midjourney	– UX Ideation – Exploring Visual Ideas	Generates high-quality, realistic visuals based on text prompts	– Perfect for getting inspiration & brainstorming – Create mood-boards with different design variations – Explore alternative visual assets at every stage of the project
Opus Clip	– Video Editing – Social Media Marketing	– Auto-identifies the most engaging parts of long videos – Converts long videos into short, viral videos in one click	– Repurpose long content into bite-sized videos that have the potential to go viral – Create promo clips for the brand
InVideo	Video Content Creation	– Converts text into videos within minutes – Features libraries of stock video footage and music	– Convert brand messages, blog posts, and other content into videos (e.g., product explainer videos) – Create marketing videos for social media

Examples of AI in UX Design

AI tools for UX design are helping pro designers cater more effectively to their audiences than ever before and there are several examples of this. Netflix leverages the power of AI-powered A/B testing to display different thumbnail images to different users, based on their artistic preferences. All of this happens in real time & all Netflix users receive curated user experiences.

Spotify employs various AI tools to track listening data & identify patterns in listener behavior (e.g., genre preferences). The analyses presented by these tools inform the everyday design decisions of Spotify’s UX design team. Other prominent examples of companies using AI to drive design decisions and operations include Airbnb, Uber, Duolingo, and Canva.

The use of AI is even more prominent among brands that exclusively invest in web design (and not app design). This high usage is being driven by AI tools like Bookmark that can be used to create fully functional websites and eCommerce stores, without any technical skills. Here are some websites that were entirely designed by such AI tools:

• Get.Strong, a fitness website created using Bookmark’s AI website builder
• Go Grow, a marketing agency created and powered by Bookmark
• Adam’s Construction Group, a small-scale construction firm with a website that was entirely designed by Wix’s ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence) tools
• Fantasy Farms was designed using  Hostinger’s AI-powered website builder

This over-abundance of AI tools has changed the UX design landscape forever. For new-age UX designers, learning how to strategically leverage these tools is not enough anymore. They must embrace upskilling, constantly expand their AI toolboxes, and master the one art that AI tools can’t perform: giving their designs a human touch.

Once designers can apply human-centered design principles to their work, AI tools will make the rest of their work way easier. Be it translating raw data into actionable insights or articulating complex design ideas via rapid prototyping: AI will become their tireless assistant and enable them to unleash their ‘human intelligence,’ which includes many crucial skills:

• Empathizing with target audiences
• Storytelling to build brand narratives that connect with users
• Creativity, problem-solving, and thinking outside the box
• Ethical decision-making
• Collaboration with developers, brand representatives, data scientists, and other key stakeholders in the project

Like the UX designers, recruiters must also fine-tune their practices and only hire technically sound professionals who know how to operate/direct AI tools.

Will AI Replace UX Designers?

At Design Studio, we use a variety of AI tools to inform (not replace) our team members. In fact, AI is one of the main reasons why we are so close to bridging the gap between our end-users. To learn more about AI tools and how to use them to optimize your digital presence, call us now!