Everyone’s been so busy panicking about ChatGPT, Claude Design, Midjourney and Canva AI that they missed what actually happened.
AI didn’t take the job. It took away the hiding place.
For years, a vague brief could survive behind a long process. “We’ll figure it out in revisions.” “The client will know it when they see it.” “Let’s just explore.”
Exploration was just a cover. Time was a buffer. And somehow, something passable emerged at the end.
That buffer is gone now.
AI can generate 40 directions in the time it used to take to make a mood board. And when you see 40 directions built on a weak brief, you don’t get clarity. You get 40 versions of the same confusion, just faster.