OCTBR

AI AS YOUR DESIGN INTERN 2026 This is a fairly easy barebones guide to build AI into your design workflow as a cheap or free “intern” ready at any given moment. PREFACE (Why give a shit what I say?) No one says you have to. But if it helps, I started c. 2005 at the age of 15 tinkering with “Paint Shop Pro” and never looked back. I designed almost purely for the music industry before “going corporate” as an in-house designer. It’s been 20 years now. My portfolio can be found on my profile. INTRO AI apps and websites are increasingly becoming unavoidable in the modern graphic design landscape. I am someone who admittedly initially cried foul of AI killing design. I’ve seen both sides of the fence and concluded that it doesn’t have to be a murderer. GRAPHIC DESIGN WITH AI TOOLS: (What you, the designer, brings to the table.) 1. Starting Point: Even if you have no idea where to start, start anywhere. Punch in a few words. Your AI of choice (I like Gemini or Manus) can free up designer’s block in minutes. Go from there, expand upon it. 2. Prompting: Creating prompts for the AI you use to generate ideas, drafts, almost-there-visuals. Tip: Don’t have to be a pro here. AI can generate AI prompts. 3. Refinement: Using your software of choice (ex: Photoshop, Illustrator) to refine, build out, and ultimately enhance the AI output. 4. Creative Ownership: Human creativity and skill remain key for achieving the ultimate goal of the project —whatever that may entail. Basically, this is reiterating the last point. Just make it yours. RECOMMENDATIONS (Subjective thoughts for “best practices”.) 1. Transparency: Regardless of any social stigma, there is no shame in leveraging new tools emerging technology has presented to us. It’s (mostly) no different than the initial adoption of the internet. Feel free to discuss the topic if you like. Be open, at your own discretion, about AI use. More of this can help to strip away that “imposter” feeling. 2. Authenticity: Use AI to enhance, not replace, your unique style. Having a style that’s yours is a beautiful thing that shows conviction. AI can simply help you make more of it. Again, there is no shame here. It’s your intern, afterall. 3. Exploration Maybe you don’t feel you have a style. Or yours is growing stale. Normal. A curious mind is also a beautiful thing. Allow AI to help you explore new styles, then take them, learn them, tinker. In a nutshell: just fuck with it. Nothing ventured nothing gained. That’s that. I’ll be working to practice what I preach. I hope this helps at least one person. That’ll be worth it.