The day the “internet crashed”
Weekly curated resources for designers — thinkers and makers.
“AWS, often called the ‘backbone of the internet,’ supports essential tools like Slack, Zoom, and Office 365, as well as popular games like Fortnite and Roblox. It also powers financial services such as Coinbase and Venmo. Even the coffee we order through the Starbucks app relies on AWS technology. (…)
Millions of users were locked out, delayed, and frustrated, facing broken workflows and halted transactions. For businesses large and small, hours of downtime translated into millions in lost productivity and revenue.”
What the AWS outage teaches us about dependencies →
image.to.design - Turn screenshots into editable Figma designs →
[Sponsored] Import any UI screenshot or image and convert it into a fully editable Figma design – Real layers. No tracing. No rebuilding. Just drop it in and start designing.
Editor picks
Designing the Jarvis moment →
Apps SDK, design principles, and the future of contextual UX.Spotify has an AI problem →
A platform flooded with songs made by no one.A tale of UX, AI, and medical practices →
Making medical appointments this month made me miss phone trees.
The UX Collective is an independent design publication that elevates unheard design voices and helps designers think more critically about their work.
Website navbar design inspiration →
Make me think
Beyond the machine: creative agency in the AI landscape →
“I’m trying to figure out how to use generative AI as a designer without feeling like shit. I am fascinated with what it can do, impressed and repulsed by what it makes, and distrustful of its owners. I am deeply ambivalent about it all. The believers demand devotion, the critics demand abstinence, and to see AI as just another technology is to be a heretic twice over.”The majority AI view →
“Even though AI has been the most-talked-about topic in tech for a few years now, we’re in an unusual situation where the most common opinion about AI within the tech industry is barely ever mentioned.”The inevitability of anger →
“You can’t fully avoid anger in your life. Even if you aren’t the type to get angry, sometimes the world just steps up and puts you in a position where your coping mechanisms break down and unregulated emotion breaks to the surface, usually in the form of an unproductive outburst.”
Little gems this week
When innovation deceives: Escaping the value mirage →
Right narratives shape lasting products →
Tools and resources
How to show invisible work →
Designers often do invisible work that matters.The secret life of prototypes →
Prototypes aren’t deliverables, they’re influencers.Typography basics →
A practical introduction to typography.
Support the newsletter
If you find our content helpful, here’s how you can support us:
Check out this week’s sponsor to support their work too
Forward this email to a friend and invite them to subscribe