From Users to Shapers of AI: The Future of Research
Summary
Key Insights
-
•
The term 'user' reduces complex human relationships to passive roles that serve platform interests.
-
•
AI’s cultural fear stems not only from the technology itself but from legacy issues of control in Web 2.0.
-
•
The 'user trap' describes our dependence on digital platforms that erode agency but are essential to modern life.
-
•
Shapers actively collaborate with AI, going beyond passive use to shape technology’s role in their lives.
-
•
Four key care skills of shapers are coaching, adaptive intelligence, responsibility, and viewing AI as an extension of self.
-
•
Big Tech’s control over AI risks repeating the mistakes of social media, potentially amplifying existing problems.
-
•
Thick data, or qualitative context-rich data, is essential to combat the complexity and context loss in AI-driven outputs.
-
•
Insight-driven organizational cultures outperform data-driven ones by integrating qualitative and quantitative knowledge.
-
•
Researchers need to move beyond 'user research' to fully embrace the complexity of people’s interaction with technology.
-
•
Experimenting personally and professionally with AI helps demystify the technology and encourages proactive engagement.
Notable Quotes
"AI is super polarizing — on one end, it’s discovering millions of new materials, on the other, it’s corrupting children’s experiences."
"We are stuck in the user trap because these platforms are central to being human today."
"In Web 2.0, a small group sets the rules and most people just play within them."
"Fear of AI comes from not trusting the inputs, the data powering these models."
"The user identity is a digital construct that commodifies humans for their data."
"Shapers combine human and machine intelligence and amplify each other’s strengths."
"Researchers might be the last people in organizations accountable for understanding humans."
"Our job is to fight context loss as data moves up layers of abstraction in AI outputs."
"Thick data is the opposite of big data and essential for rescuing lost context."
"Language matters — calling people 'users' reflects and reinforces the reality of reduced agency."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"There are roles out there, but they come with longer processes—some of mine lasted up to five months."
Corey LongHiring in DesignOps: A Critical Study on How to Hire and Get Hired
September 23, 2024
"That’s the kind of feature that never would have made it to the top of anyone’s backlog without design."
Gretchen AndersonScaling the Human Center
June 8, 2017
"I see this opportunity to imbue these rigid, bureaucratic corporate contexts with humanism to put people at the center of the work."
Lori Muszynski Peter MerholzKeeping Design Weird
October 2, 2023
"Assistive technology includes software and hardware that people with disabilities use to access computers."
Sam ProulxSUS: A System Unusable for Twenty Percent of the Population
June 9, 2021
"It's important not to be a parachute researcher who just jumps in, asks questions, and jumps out without impact."
Prayag Narula Rida QadriHCI 2.0: Humanity Deserves the Attention that UX Research has to Offer
March 28, 2023
"Piloting your ideas before committing helps prevent disruption and saves energy in the long run."
Deanna SmithLeading Change with Confidence: Strategies for Optimizing Your Process
September 23, 2024
"Empathic data is the most accessible starting point for people who are not trained researchers."
Lija HoganDoing more with more: Lessons from the Front Lines of Democratization
March 9, 2022
"We are beginning to see cycles of history repeat themselves in accessibility, especially in gaming and AR/VR."
Sam ProulxTo Boldly Go: The New Frontiers of Accessibility
March 11, 2022
"You can also reach us quickly by going to help-desk-customer-service for any tech or support issues."
Bria AlexanderOpening Remarks
October 3, 2023
