It’s time to build AI‑first software.
The Software Gap We Don’t Talk About Enough
Every day, people interact with software that requires them to learn its logic—its menus, workflows, and edge cases. But in an age of generative AI, why is software still expecting humans to adapt, instead of adapting to them? We’re long overdue for a shift.
- From rigid interfaces to responsive ones.
- From reactive tools to predictive companions.
- From “click here” to “how can I help?”
This is why balancing user experience and business goals with AI is no longer optional—it’s essential.
1. What Does It Mean to Be AI‑First?
Let’s get clear: being “AI-enhanced” is not the same as being AI‑first.
- AI-enhanced = slapping on a chatbot or auto-summarizer after the fact.
- AI‑first = thinking about user intelligence, automation, and personalization from day one.
When we design AI-first, we’re not building products that feel more robotic—we’re building products that feel more human. Because AI-first software can:
- Learn from the user’s behavior
- Adapt to changing context in real time
- Support better decisions with smarter defaults
- Personalize journeys to fit real-life needs
It’s the difference between software that says, “Here’s the dashboard,” and software that asks, “What are you trying to accomplish today?”
2. Six Ways AI Transforms the Everyday User Journey
You don’t need a full model pipeline to start delivering AI-first experiences. Sometimes, it’s about inserting just the right intelligence at the right moment:
| AI Tool | User Benefit | Business Win |
|---|---|---|
| Smart onboarding | Personalized setup = faster confidence | Reduces drop-off |
| Predictive search | Saves time, reduces clicks | Increases engagement |
| Contextual suggestions | Helps users get unstuck | Higher task success rate |
| AI-powered summaries | Cuts through info overload | Increases retention |
| Auto-populated forms | Removes friction | Boosts conversions |
| Adaptive UI | Adjusts to preferences | Raises usage frequency |
At StoryFile, we embedded conversational branching logic to make users feel truly heard during AI video chats.
At Amazon, I helped optimize Alexa’s generative responses so they felt more fluid, brand-aligned, and helpful.
At USC Libraries, we transformed archival discovery into a guided, voice-first journey.
All of these were AI tools—but more importantly, they were UX tools. They made people’s lives a little easier, more intuitive, and more human-centered.
3. My 50/50 Strategy: Where AI Design Meets Product Strategy
My 50/50 strategy explained: Design every AI feature to deliver 50% user value, 50% business value. That balance is what creates lasting impact. Too often, AI features are scoped from a purely technical or novelty angle. I flip the script by using a simple framework:
Step 1: Identify friction in the user journey. Where do people hesitate, drop off, or abandon tasks?
Step 2: Match AI capabilities to user pain points. Could prediction, personalization, automation, or adaptation improve this experience?
Step 3: Validate the business impact. Will this increase retention, reduce support cost, accelerate onboarding, or unlock new revenue?
It’s about designing AI like any good product decision: user-first, metrics-informed, outcome-driven.
4. How to Transition Legacy Software to an AI‑First Experience
You don’t need to rebuild your entire product to go AI-first. You need to evolve it—deliberately.
Here’s a transformation playbook I’ve used with SaaS products and platform teams:
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Audit your UX flows: Look for bottlenecks, repeatable user frustrations, and manual data entry.
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Identify AI-fit opportunities: Ask “What could we automate, predict, or personalize here?”
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Start small: Choose one journey to improve—onboarding, help desk, reporting.
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Prototype fast, test iteratively: User trust is won or lost in the first 5 seconds of AI interaction.
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Measure what matters: Track both experience metrics (satisfaction, time-on-task) and business outcomes.
Think of AI as a layer that gradually infuses your product with more intelligence—not a replacement engine.
5. AI Design is a Trust Exercise
Being AI-first isn’t just about what your software can do—it’s about how it makes users feel. That’s why great AI UX is built around:
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Transparency – Show users what the AI knows (and doesn’t)
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Control – Let users undo, skip, or override suggestions
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Delight – Include little moments of magic (personal wins, playful touches)
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Recovery – Make it easy to bounce back from AI misfires
If people trust your product to help them think, not just click, they’ll keep coming back.
Being AI-first isn’t just about what your software can do—it’s about how it makes users feel.
AI-first design isn’t about showing off what the tech can do. It’s about helping users feel:
More capable. More confident. More connected.
And when you do that—while solving clear business needs—you build products that people love and companies grow with. If you’re a product leader, designer, or founder, ask yourself: What part of your product could be 10x better with a little intelligence—and a lot of empathy? That’s the heart of an AI-first strategy. That’s how we build software that finally works like it should—for everyone.