Jonas Naimark

𝗔 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗕𝗲 𝗨𝘀𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 Apple's recent leadership change in interface design highlights a crucial lesson for all of us in product development. Alan Dye, who led the controversial "Liquid Glass" design in iOS 26, has left Apple for Meta. What's striking? Apple employees reportedly celebrated the news. The issue wasn't a lack of creativity. Liquid Glass looked stunning, transparent, modern, and glass-like. But it created serious problems: white text on white backgrounds, poor contrast, and accessibility issues that made interfaces difficult to read for many users. The core problem: Dye came from advertising and marketing, not interface design. He prioritized how things looked over how they worked. Stephen Lemay, a career interface designer known for attention to detail and usability, is now taking over. The takeaway for all of us: Aesthetics matter, but they should never come at the expense of functionality. Good design serves users first. A beautiful product that people struggle to use isn't well-designed; it's just pretty. Whether you're designing interfaces, products, or experiences, ask yourself: does this actually help people accomplish what they need to do? 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧'𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐞𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡. #ProductDesign #UX #UI #Leadership #Apple #DesignThinking

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The future of design isn't prettier pixels—it's intelligence architecture. Suff Syed's latest piece challenges everything we know: designers must move from the surface to the substrate—from interfaces to the intelligence layer beneath. We've spent careers perfecting visual design, following leaders like Jony Ive. However, in the Era of Intelligence, we need to look toward different leaders—such as Demis Hassabis—who design systems that think, not just look beautiful. Here's the shift: The skills that got us here are no longer sufficient. As AI becomes the new operating system, designers who understand agentic AI, proactive systems, and personal intelligence will shape the next decade. Why now: 96% of designers are self-teaching AI skills. Startups are adopting AI at twice the rate of enterprises. The window to become an outlier is closing. This isn't about AI replacing designers—it's about designers who understand AI replacing those who don't. My challenge: Stop treating AI as just another tool. Start learning how these systems work intimately. Move from decorating surfaces to architecting intelligence. Read Suff's full article: https://lnkd.in/dtfG4dGn Will you be designing with AI or watching from the sidelines? #Design #AI #UXDesign #ProductDesign #DesignLeadership

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