The Evolution of UX Design : Exploring the Collaboration of UX Practitioners and AI Tools in the Design Process

Sammanfattning

Human-AI collaboration is evolving exponentially in the UX design practice. However, we do not know much about how current UX practitioners practically leverage the use of AI tools in the design process. To explore this, eight in-depth interviews are conducted with UX practitioners of varying experience. The findings of this study indicate that UX practitioners mainly use AI tools as an assistant for idea generation and automating repetitive tasks. Human designers still offer an advantage in the phases of prototyping and testing because of factors regarding AI tools lacking quality in producing high-fidelity prototypes and contextuality. However, the respondents perceive possibilities in AI becoming more useful in these areas in the future, while the UX design role pivots more towards empathic and soft skills. The respondents call for individual responsibility in the collaboration with AI tools to minimize the risk of incompetence and production of low quality design solutions. It is also expressed that the ethical concerns need to be mitigated by legal guidelines, ensuring safe and moral usage of AI in general and in the UX design practice in particular.