Interactivity

How AI writing tools fail to speak to writers

Seven design insights from taking Grammarly ads (too) seriously.Writing your way or moving writing out of the way? Image by the author.Three weeks ago, YouTube finally decided that I must be interested in writing. Fair enough: I’m a Human-Computer Interaction professor researching writing tools and the impact of AI. Soon, my feed filled with Grammarly ads — and I started reflecing on their curious messages.What if we took AI writing tool ads seriously?Ads may seem an odd source for design reflec

A Hippocratic Oath for tech… with teeth

From Frankenstein’s dilemma to the Greek agora, history offers blueprints for building tech industry legitimacy.Endpaper illustration for the 1983 Marvel Comics adaptation of Frankenstein, by Bernie Wrightson.I was reading Frankenstein to my son last week (as one does in the days leading up to Halloween). As he fell asleep, I was struck by a thought. The “move fast and break things” ethos of the last two decades in tech is remarkably similar to the core themes of the 200+ y/o Shelley classic. Th

Micro-interactions in UX and why they exist

Have you ever scrolled through an endless list of years just to find your birth year?

Micro-Interactions: The Joyful Touches That Enhance Your Software Experience!

Never forget that software is about humans

Dark Mode Is the New Comic Sans (And You Know It)

Dark mode is the Comic Sans of our time—born useful, hijacked by aesthetics, and now forced on users. It’s not kinder to your eyes, often wrecks accessibility, and turns UX into a design monoculture. Looking “premium” on Dribbble doesn’t make it good design.

AI gardens, Sora icon, Claude Code & Figma MCP, error handling UX

Weekly curated resources for designers — thinkers and makers.“The 1930s were ripe for innovation, during the thick of the Second Industrial Revolution. Designers were captivated by the new technology of plywood bending, which allowed previously impossible forms to emerge.”How Estonia, AI gardens, and plywood make designers prolific →By Darren YeoNew report: How AI will transform the research tech stack in 2026 →[Sponsored] AI is transforming research — but automation alone isn’t enough. Learn ho

How grocery store layouts manipulate your shopping behavior

If you overspend, you’re shopping exactly as designedContinue reading on UX Collective »

The 5 Pixar Storytelling Principles That Will Redefine How You Present and Fast-Track Your Career

Ever sat through a presentation that felt like watching paint dry? You’re not alone. Most presentations miss one vital ingredient: Storytelling. And when it comes to telling stories that make people laugh, cry, or rethink their entire worldview… no one does it like Pixar. They’ve mastered the art of turning simple ideas into unforgettable emotional experiences, and that’s exactly what your presentations need.We often think storytelling is something that belongs in the world of writers, filmmaker

Neo Robot and the role of design in selling unfinished dreams

From ‘Fake it till you make it’, to ‘Build it with Integrity’Continue reading on UX Collective »

The hidden structure of digital products

Bridging the gap between atomic design and conceptual modelsContinue reading on UX Collective »

Are we designing for brain rot?

The consequences of making habit-forming apps.Continue reading on UX Collective »

How to nail onboarding — a case study of Runna

How to nail onboarding — a case study of RunnaLessons in clarity, confidence and communityNearly 1 billion runs were recorded on Strava in 2024.Targeting runners is a big market.And it’s a market that’s growing — according to Strava, running was the ‘fastest growing sport globally’ with ‘Gen Z turning to running to create community and connection’.Which is the winning strategy for coaching app Runna.If you run, you’ve probably heard of Runna. The consumer app is all over Instagram, TikTok, and S

Evergreen Web Design Is a Lie (But Maybe That’s Okay)

“Evergreen” web design sounds noble, but in reality, it’s just safe, bland, and creatively bankrupt. Designers chasing timelessness are often just afraid to take risks—and that fear is killing originality on the web.

Fading Light And Falling Leaves (November 2025 Wallpapers Edition)

November can feel a bit gray in many parts of the world, so what better way to brighten the days than with a splash of colorful inspiration? For this month’s wallpapers edition, artists and designers from around the globe once again tickled their creativity and designed unique and inspiring wallpapers that are sure to bring some good vibes to your desktops and home screens.As always, the wallpapers in this post come in a variety of screen resolutions and can be downloaded for free — just as it h

Designing for emotional dependence

How tech companies like OpenAI are addressing emotional safety to make technology more humane.Continue reading on UX Collective »

Hoping for the long-term

An interview with Alexander Rose.Image by Dave Hoffer. Inset is the little baby redwood tree I planted in my backyard.Time is money. Move fast and break things. Crunch time. We hear these idioms repeated, and to many, they become true. You can live your life by these sayings if you like.I prefer:“Time is a fluid condition which has no existence except in the momentary avatars of individual people. — Virginia Woolf”Woolf seemed to recognize the spectrum on which time exists — its fluidity. Import

The horrors of designing for omniscience

What happens when systems decide the human is ‘all-knowing’Ever click a button and have a system misbehave with no warning, feedback, or a way to undo, only to feel the repercussions minutes or a few days later?This is what I’ve coined “Designing for Omniscience” (and the horrors thereof). It’s what happens when a system assumes the human on the other end is ‘all-knowing’ and proceeds in silence. This arrogance of finality can scar (or scare) and have real world consequences beyond the screen, a

The paradox of tolerance

Karl Popper and the extinction of the rational mindKarl PopperDisagreement feels like a loyalty test.Even the way we ask questions has changed. We phrase them like traps and treat the answers as evidence. That hasn’t stopped us from talking about sensitive topics, but it’s made talking things out feel very performative.For me, it’s raised a harder question: What does tolerance actually mean? Because those most eager to claim it might be showing us its limits.I’m Nate Sowder, and this is unquoted

You’re Not Bad at Presenting; You Just Haven’t Mastered the Right Way (Yet)

Ever walked out of a presentation thinking, “That could’ve gone so much better, maybe I’m just not a presenter”? You’re not alone. And you’re not the problem. You simply haven’t been shown an easy, clear, repeatable way to prepare, deliver and follow up.Presenting is not an innate talent; it’s a skill taught in executive programs, practiced by leaders and absolutely easily learnable by you.In this video, Morgane Peng, Head of Product Design & AI Transformation at Societe Generale, shows why

Sora app icon: a visual breakdown

How the new Sora app icon gives away more than meets the eye.The New Sora App Icon is Giving Away More Than Meets the Eye.Two weeks ago we saw the release of the new Sora app by OpenAI. Unfortunately the app is only available in the US and Canada, and I’m in neither. Since I can’t use the app itself, I thought I’ll do a breakdown of what I can actually see — the app icon, it looks simple at first glance but it packs a lot if we can deconstruct it. I’m doing this breakdown as a fun exercise in de