Design is now a specification problem

01

Structure

Structure

01

Encoding design intent so agents can read it. Author structure from the start, or recover it from flat artifacts.

  • Design.md
    Design spec as markdown — readable by humans, agents, CI. The contract agents read to maintain unity across 7 sites.
  • Forma (forma-cli)
    Brand identity as validated YAML with typed schema. Palette, typography, volume zones — machine-readable from day one.
  • LICA Dataset
    1,148 designs as component-level JSON. Position, color, font, size — diffable, queryable, trainable.
  • Qwen-Image-Layered
    Recovers structure from flat images. Decomposes any PNG into semantically disentangled RGBA layers.
  • Quiver
    AI vector design — outputs editable SVG, not raster. Paths, shapes, colors individually addressable.
  • Gemini Embedding 2
    Text, images, video, audio in a single 3072-dim vector space. Cross-modal search and comparison.
Both paths end at legibility. If agents can't read it, they can't act on it.
02

Agency

Agency

02

Agents that design autonomously within human-set boundaries. Policy, not supervision.

  • Open Pencil
    Agent-driven design tool. Reads/writes Figma files via tool use. Local model for on-device agent design.
  • Brand-OS (brand-os)
    Policy engine for autonomous agents: allow / escalate / deny. Decision audit trail. Human-set boundaries, machine execution.
  • Phantom CLI (phantom-cli)
    Topic + brand YAML → graded copy + image + poster in 30s. Atomic steps: each returns JSON, fails independently, composes into workflows.
  • DrawBot Evolve (drawbot-cli)
    Genetic algorithm breeds poster forms. Population → crossover + mutation → next generation. Autonomous design through evolution.
Structure is what agents read. Agency is what agents do. The constraint is what makes the output designerly.
03

Taste

Taste

03

The designer's new job: choosing, not making. Surfaces for human judgment that feed back into structure.

  • Locale
    Browse system fonts, logo treatment preview. Taste as exploration — the interface is the design act.
  • Loftlyy
    Mobbin for branding. Browse palettes, typography, logos, design systems. Taste as pattern recognition.
  • Forma Viewer (forma-cli)
    Edit brand YAML, see rendered specimens live. Taste as feedback loop — judgment encoded back into structure.
  • DrawBot Selection (drawbot-cli)
    Pick winners from generated populations. Your preference shapes the next generation. Taste as evolutionary pressure.
  • Phantom Grading (phantom-cli)
    Automated quality gate across 5 dimensions. Anti-slop blacklist. Taste encoded as machine-enforceable rubric.
Taste feeds back into Structure. Structure enables Agency. It's a loop — the designer steers it.