AI made us faster. Did it make us better?

Building fast stopped being the hard part. The hard part now is building fast in the right direction. AI doesn’t fix a wrong direction: it amplifies it.

In my work, I use a participatory method I call the Design Spiral (it’s the core of my book COUX). A project moves through four Moments: Understanding, Ideating, Prototyping and Validating. They follow no fixed order. In every one of them, AI is a CoParticipant, but it doesn’t make the decisions:

→ Understanding: AI synthesizes research in hours. People define the real problem. → Ideating: AI explores dozens of paths. Co-creation sessions choose what matters. → Prototyping: AI turns screens into prototypes in days. Devs join early and shape feasibility. → Validating: AI helps analyze sessions. Real people decide.

Speed without listening amplifies the error. When AI and people work together, each turn of the Spiral gets faster and more accurate.

I’m curious how this looks for you: where has AI already taken over in your process, and where do you still insist on people deciding? 👇 👍