Overview
We’re well into the age of AI and automation — and yet craft is more valued than ever. As generated output floods the industry, value has shifted to the intricate, the intentional, the hard-to-replicate. We’re left with a cultural contradiction: tools optimized for speed and a market newly obsessed with detail.
In this behind-the-scenes talk, Talia Cotton shares how her studio of designer-coders resolves that tension. Through real client work and live-coded examples, she demonstrates how to use automation without aesthetic compromise — and how mastering the intersection of craft and technology is what makes designers not just relevant, but irreplaceable.
Objective
To show how technology can amplify craft instead of replacing it.
Target Audience
Designers, creative technologists, and digital creatives navigating AI-era practice.
Things Audience Members Will Learn
- Why craft is gaining value in an AI-saturated industry
- A behind-the-scenes look at how we build strategic, intentional technological design work
- Ways to embed AI into creative systems beyond chatbots and surface-level integrations
- How to balance “vibe coding” with rigorous engineering in professional practice
- A framework for designing automated outputs that still feel authored