Generative AI in Design
Generative AI in design means using AI models to produce or speed up design work: research synthesis, copy drafts, layout exploration, images and prototypes. In Figma's State of the Designer 2026, 72% of designers use generative AI in their workflows; the judgment about what to keep stays with the designer.
Example. A designer asks an AI tool for ten layout directions for a dashboard, keeps two, and refines them by hand against real user data.
Also called: ai in design, ai tools for designers, should ux designers learn ai
AI Copilot
An AI copilot is an assistant that works alongside a person, suggesting and drafting while the person decides. In design the phrase "copilot, not autopilot" describes products where AI helps visibly and explains what it changed, with people keeping control.
Example. A writing tool suggests a shorter error message and shows the original next to it, so the designer accepts, edits or rejects it.
Also called: ai as a copilot, copilot not autopilot
Generative UI
Generative UI is interface content or layout produced by AI at the moment of use, adapted to each person's request or context, instead of fixed screens designed in advance. Designers define the components, rules and limits the AI can work within.
Example. Asked "compare these three flights", an assistant builds a comparison table on the fly from the product's own table component.
Also called: genui, ai-generated interfaces
AI-Assisted Prototyping
AI-assisted prototyping uses AI tools to turn a description, sketch or screenshot into a working prototype quickly. It speeds up early exploration; testing with real users still decides which idea survives.
Example. A designer describes a booking flow in a prompt, gets a clickable draft in minutes and spends the afternoon testing it with three users.
Also called: ai prototyping, prompt to prototype
Conversation Design
Conversation design is designing interactions that happen through dialogue, in chat or voice: what the system says, how it asks questions, handles errors and hands over to a person. It grows in importance as AI assistants spread.
Example. A banking assistant confirms the amount and recipient in one short sentence before any transfer, and offers a human agent after two misunderstood requests.
Also called: conversational ux, chatbot design
Accessibility
Accessibility means designing products that people with disabilities can use: people who are blind or have low vision, are deaf, have motor or cognitive disabilities, and anyone in a limiting situation such as bright sunlight. The WebAIM Million found WCAG 2 errors on 95.9% of the top million home pages in 2026, up from 94.8% in 2025 and down only slightly from 97.8% in 2019.
Example. A form with visible labels, enough contrast, clear error messages and full keyboard support works for screen reader users and for everyone else too.
Also called: a11y, accessible design, digital accessibility
Accessibility-First Design
Accessibility-first design builds accessibility into the first design decisions, such as colours, type, components and flows, instead of fixing it after an audit. Contrast, labels, names and sizes are decided in the design file, where they are cheapest to get right.
Example. A team checks every text style against WCAG contrast in the design system, so every screen built from it passes from the start.
Also called: accessible by default, inclusive design
WCAG
WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) is the W3C standard for accessible web content. WCAG 2.2 is the current version to design and test against; level AA is the usual target for products and in many laws.
Example. A design system documents which WCAG 2.2 AA criteria each component meets, such as contrast, focus visibility and target size.
Also called: web content accessibility guidelines, wcag 2.2
WCAG 3
WCAG 3 is the next version of the accessibility guidelines, still a W3C working draft in 2026 (the latest draft is from September 2026). The W3C does not expect it to be a finished standard for a few more years, and WCAG 2 stays valid long after.
Example. A team that hears "WCAG 3 is coming this year" keeps designing to WCAG 2.2, which is what audits and laws check today.
Also called: wcag 3.0, is wcag 3 required
Contrast Ratio
Contrast ratio measures the difference in brightness between text and its background, from 1:1 to 21:1. WCAG 2.2 level AA asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text (18 point, or 14 point bold). Low-contrast text is the most common accessibility problem: WebAIM found it on 83.9% of top home pages in 2026, up from 79.1% in 2025.
Example. Light grey placeholder text on white often measures around 2:1, too faint for many readers; a darker grey fixes it.
Also called: color contrast, wcag contrast ratio
Target Size
Target size is how large a clickable or tappable element is. WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.5.8 (level AA) asks for at least 24 by 24 CSS pixels, or enough spacing around a smaller target. Larger targets are easier for everyone, especially on phones.
Example. A tiny close icon in a modal gets a 44-pixel invisible tap area, so people stop missing it with their thumb.
Also called: tap target size, touch target size, minimum tap target size
Screen Reader
A screen reader is software that reads the interface aloud or sends it to a braille display, for people who are blind or have low vision. It relies on proper structure, labels and names, which designers specify.
Example. Without an accessible name, a screen reader announces an icon button as just "button", and the user has to guess what it does.
Also called: assistive technology
Accessible Name
An accessible name is the text assistive technology announces for an element, such as "Close dialog" for an X icon. Designers should write it in the spec for every icon-only button and link.
Example. A spec lists the names for a toolbar: "Bold", "Italic", "Insert link", "Undo".
Also called: aria label, icon button label
Alt Text
Alt text is a short text alternative for an image that carries meaning, read aloud by screen readers and shown when the image doesn't load. Decorative images are marked as decorative so they are skipped.
Example. A chart image gets alt text summarising its point: "Sign-ups doubled after the new onboarding launched in March."
Also called: alternative text, image alt text
Dark Patterns
Dark patterns, also called deceptive patterns, are interface tricks that push people into choices they did not intend, such as hidden costs, hard-to-find cancel buttons or pre-ticked consent boxes. UX designer Harry Brignull has catalogued them since 2010 on Deceptive Design, formerly darkpatterns.org.
Example. A subscription can be started in one tap but cancelled only by phone during office hours.
Also called: deceptive patterns, deceptive design
Ethical Design
Ethical design means weighing the effects of a design on people and society, beyond business metrics: honesty, privacy, inclusion, attention and wellbeing. It rejects dark patterns and asks who could be harmed by a decision.
Example. A team removes an autoplay countdown after research shows it keeps teenagers watching far longer than they intended.
Also called: responsible design, humane design
Calm Design
Calm design builds interfaces that ask for as little attention as possible: fewer interruptions, quiet defaults and information shown at the edge until it is needed. It responds to notification fatigue.
Example. A team app bundles non-urgent notifications into one summary at the end of the day instead of pinging every few minutes.
Also called: calm technology, calm interfaces
Sustainable UX
Sustainable UX reduces the environmental cost of digital products: lighter pages, fewer heavy media files, efficient flows and less wasted data. Faster, lighter pages also tend to be better for users on slow connections.
Example. Replacing an autoplaying hero video with a compressed image cuts the page weight sharply and speeds up loading on mobile.
Also called: green ux, sustainable design
Neubrutalism
Neubrutalism is a visual style with flat, saturated colours, thick black outlines, hard offset shadows and visible grids. It looks bold and raw; the risk is contrast and readability, which still have to meet accessibility rules.
Example. A landing page uses yellow cards with 3-pixel black borders and solid shadows offset to the bottom right.
Also called: neo-brutalism, neobrutalism
Bento Grid
A bento grid arranges content in tiles of different sizes inside one rectangular grid, like a Japanese bento box. It shows many features at once with a clear hierarchy, and it adapts well to mobile by stacking tiles.
Example. A product page shows one large tile for the main feature and five smaller tiles around it for supporting ones.
Also called: bento grid layout, bento box layout
Spatial Design
Spatial design creates interfaces that live in three-dimensional space, for mixed reality headsets and 3D environments: depth, distance, scale and how windows respond to where a person looks or points.
Example. A recipe app in a headset floats the current step at eye level next to the stove and keeps the ingredient list off to the side.
Also called: spatial ui, 3d interfaces
