State of Product Design 2025

Community
21

Continuing to track 2026 progress and hold it against what people think is holding it back.

  1. We’re handing our designs to AI tools like Figma, quietly training systems that will redefine who gets to design and what design is worth.
  2. We’re handing our design systems to growth teams so they can squeeze every last penny out of customers.
  3. We’re trading empathy for algorithms and letting automated systems make decisions we no longer fully understand.
  4. We’re shipping products before they’re ready and hiding behind “fail fast” as an excuse for broken experiences.
  5. We’re shifting our focus from good design to organizational politics and survival inside companies.
  6. We’re publishing half-baked thoughts online to compensate for the recognition we don’t get at work.
  7. We’re giving up on shared community spaces and letting large companies set the design agenda.

Agree or disagree?

Which direction are we heading in?

1 Like
22

We could be choosing to create software that is local-first, more private, and more thoughtful. Still, we’re choosing to build for the machine—not for each other.

This feels true but it’s hard to say because ultimately money transfer is where you truly feel the pulse of value.

I’d say there’s a big leap in the direction mentioned, but I also expect the reverse to happen at the same time. Smaller companies that care- the humanistic aspect of them will probably shine in an automated world.

It’s the part of me thinking that we’ll turn out okay in the end!!

23

This one also hit a home-run

We’re publishing half-baked thoughts on Linkedin, hoping for the recognition we don’t get at work. This year, the lack of job security also made designers double down on our “online presence”, in an attempt to remain relevant within our networks. We’re writing catchy Linkedin posts to please the algorithm; we’re making our thoughts more polarizing than they need to be. There’s no place for longer-form discussions or nuanced back and forth. It’s easier to build an audience using controversy than real thought. [43] [44] [45]

24

Ahhh, yes. What to do in a post-Dribbble world?

We want this to be Glare! We’d love to facilitate more of these great gems from @nikhil_mahen. There’s a lot of good stuff in this thread to lean into.

1 Like
25

This reads very pessimistic. I’d rewrite as:

  1. We’re handing designs to AI tools like Figma, but still don’t understand how to define the value for ourselves.
  2. The company has built growth teams because Design is an expense and expertise that doesn’t connect to the business value.
  3. We never fully invested in learning about the system we built
  4. This one is just true.
  5. This one is just true.
  6. This one might be true, if you haven’t done the work of 1-3.
  7. You’ve already given up on the shared community spaces. Our political and social climate died 5 years ago.
1 Like
26

Great job reworking some of those @EricZ! I think those are a bit more accurate

27

Liked this from the bottom of the article “If you love to design, you’ll find your way. Love also rearranges itself to fit new molds.”

The list has a sad undertone to it :sad_but_relieved_face: