Design Thinking + AI: a powerful combination

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Over the past year, we have experienced a unique moment in the history of technology with the emergence of numerous generative AIs (generative artificial intelligences or gen AIs ), which are artificial intelligence systems capable of creating original content and have transformed fields ranging from writing to design. Many take the form of chatbots. These tools, such as Open AI’s ChatGPT , Google’s Bard , Microsoft’s Bing and Elon Musk’s X.AI’s Grok , are not just technical advances; they represent a new era in digital interaction and creation. These AIs expand creative horizons and challenge concepts of innovation and collaboration, at a speed that is much faster than that of purely human work. New AIs and developments emerge every day, and it is difficult to keep up.

This is the context in which the philosophy of Design Thinking , focused on creative solutions, finds a new and powerful ally in AI. In addition to being a human-centered and extremely collaborative whatsapp data way of creating innovations, Design Thinking can also be understood as a phased process focused on reducing the risk of innovation. In this process, generally composed of five phases, artificial intelligence can enhance human productivity, such as facilitating analysis and the development of ideas. This article attempts to shed light on some possibilities for using generative AI in each of the phases.


Design Thinking Framework – D.School (Stanford). Empathy: Deep Analytics Through AI

In the empathy phase, AI can help analyze large amounts of data at high speed, but not only that! It can also create personas to respond to in-depth interviews, presenting the results in formats such as the Empathy Map (a Design Thinking classic) or a Customer Map (Value Proposition Canvas) , for example.

Another possibility is to ask the AI ​​to act as if it were someone else: a senior professional from a top consulting firm or a PhD researcher from Harvard to be your analysis partner? Just ask.

In business diagnostics, AI provides complete competitor analysis with results in tables or even in the format of classic tools. Have you ever thought about asking for a Business Model Canvas from your top ten competitors? And what about your brand's Brand Key ? How about a SWOT Matrix ? Designing future scenarios with a Context Map ? All this in seconds? No problem!

Definition: AI as a Catalyst for Challenges and Issues

At this critical stage, technology has the power to transform the way we define problems. Using advanced data analytics, AI can uncover hidden insights and help (re)frame “How Might We” questions that challenge the status quo, enabling us to identify problems and opportunities in more interesting and inspiring ways. Adjusting a challenge to make it more comprehensive or more specific is one possibility. But what about asking the AI ​​to rewrite challenges like Master Yoda from Star Wars would do? Or with the style of the legendary Steve Jobs, founder of Apple? A well-formulated question can unlock a world of new ideas.

Ideation: Empowering Creativity with AI

AI in ideation acts as a brainstorming partner , proposing solutions that often go beyond the capacity of the 100% human creative process or that unlock new possibilities by being able to quickly generate several new ideas. We can ask AI to generate more solutions in relation to ideas we already have or even deepen (and structure!) some more promising ones. How about asking your digital brainstorming partner to take on different personalities or contexts, thus ensuring the important multi-perspective vision of Design Thinking? The possibilities are incredible.

There are already (and are yet to emerge) even more specific cases. Open AI, creator of ChatGPT, has developed a GPT Builder, which allows users to create or customize their own ChatGPTs, now available in a single place: a GPT Store (available only on the Plus plan). I myself have created several GPTs, such as one that helps people improve their Customer Journeys , a Workshop Facilitator or even an Instant Business Model Generator based on just two pieces of information! (Available to premium subscribers only).