Joyful ideation

The latest incarnation of GenAI is impressive for creatives. For example, Claude is highly regarded because it produces the widest cognitive range of ideas; Grok is a champion for "edgy" or counter-intuitive brainstorms; and Midjourney offers a complete visual exploration platform. Yet GenAI cannot replace human agency, physical presence and emotional intelligence. And while LLMs process data when prompted, only humans possess intrinsic curiosity, true creativity and ethical reasoning. And then there is the pleasure of ideating. Like airline pilots who love flying manually, despite all available technological support, so the best designer love designing without having to rely on AI, at least in the ideation phase. This is because people love doing what they are good at. A key word here, then, is the joy of of designing. Or, as the architect Peter Cook puts it: "architecture should be a cheerful business". That is, playful optimism translated into productive ideas.

GenAI-free workshop?

The ideation workshop was launched well before the mainstream use of GenAI, such as ChatGPT (2022) when designers generated ideas stemming from personal iteration with pen and paper, collage or sketch modelling using materials such as card- and foam-board, balsa wood, clay, wire or plastic sheets. These ideation tools are known for their immediacy, low-cost and flexibility supporting human creativity and traditional design principles. And when the analogue tools are extended by software tools such, as Adobe Photoshop and Rhino 3D, they combine physical and digital crafts. However, what has changed with AI is that machine learning models (LLMs) can simulate human ideation tools generating new content in form of text, images, and video. Yet there are differences. And so, whereas non-GenAI ideation tools rely on human intent, intuition and lived experience as well as technical skill, GenAI tools depend on user prompt, vast training data, high-performance computing and algorithmic pattern-matching. That is, GenAI tools are reactive, the prompt initiates the ideation path which is then shaped by the AI model. But the design process is supported by multimodal tools (analogue, digital and AI), and designers typically switch between tools or use them in different configurations informed by the complexity, constraints and scale of the design project. Ideation output, however, is evaluated not on the type of tools used but by human review and judgement. Yet for reason of clarity, transparency and integrity, all tools used in the ideation process should be openly declared as part of the idea(s) presentation.