The Future Favors the Curious
April 1, 2025
Running design at Microsoft AI and having done a decent amount of hiring lately, I can tell you that the patterns emerging now are exactly as they were in 1995. There is a giant population of designers who have a bunch of really great skills. Some of those designers will decide they are content doing the same sort of design they have done for their whole careers. Others will decide to learn as much as they can about AI and prepare for an industry that will look very different in 5 to 10 years. Finally, there is another group of people who have no design experience whatsoever but are so enamored with this new technology that they will teach themselves very useful skills in a short amount of time. Do not underestimate this third group as it’s easier than ever to fake it ’til you make it right now.
Mike Davidson is a giant in the design profession, now Corporate Vice President, Design & User Research @ Microsoft AI. He’s been doing design for the Web for as long as just about anyone, and draws on his experience to provide encouragement and advice for those who might be wanting to focus on (as existing or new designers) on design for AI.
