If you work in creative or development, you've probably had the same thoughts I've had lately. Maybe it was after watching someone spin up a full website in a 2-minute demo, might have been when a client asked why they're paying you when ChatGPT can "do the same thing," or maybe it was quieter than that… just a feeling in your gut that something shifted and you're not sure where you stand anymore in this field.
I've had that thought… more than once… and it's unsettling.
I've been building digital experiences for 15 years, with eight of those at T-Mobile designing and developing interactive tools that millions of people use. On the side, I've run a consultancy called Empac since I was 18. I've had my fair share of clients and stakeholders questioning my thinking, decisions, output, and more… and I'd be lying if I said the last year hasn't made me worry about this additional AI component that makes it easier for all these people to feel confirmed by a computer before seeking a professional opinion.
From my perspective, here's what seems to be happening out there: Companies are handing AI tools to people who've never written a line of code and saying "go build something." Sometimes it works brilliantly, other times it looks like polished garbage. Marketing teams are generating campaign assets without calling the creative department. Business owners are launching websites without hiring a developer (and successfully leaking the information of their users and clients). Founders are prototyping products without a design team. It's all happening incredibly fast, across every industry, and it seems like our craft is quickly becoming a utility and/or commodity.
So the question becomes: what do you do if this is your career now?
You can panic, that's certainly a valid first reaction (guilty as charged). I've seen it, felt it, and I'm certain you have as well... when something you spent a decade getting good at suddenly becomes accessible to everyone. It sucks. And there's always that instinct to push back, and to argue that AI output isn't as good… that it still needs a professional's touch. All of it is true, but "it's not as good... yet" isn't a strategy… It's a countdown to when you'll lose your job to these tools.
You can ignore it, which is also valid… for about six more months. Then you'll end up falling behind.
Or you can do what I did, which is pick up these new AI tools and start building.
So, instead of sitting with that anxiety I started experimenting with ChatGPT, Claude, Midjourney, Sora, and other tools. I rebuilt my entire portfolio site using Claude Code as a development partner, I took a side project called GameShuffle that was pretty static and turned it into a full platform with AI-assisted development, and now I'm reworking my consultancy's website and service model with these tools baked into the process. I also built a design system from scratch using Figma and AI to accelerate the component development.
At a glance, I recognized that none of it replaced my expertise… but all of it made me much more productive.
And that's the thing nobody tells you in the "AI is coming for your job" articles… The tool should never replace the thinking. What it should do is replace the tedious parts of executing on your thinking. I still make every design decision, architect every system, write the content strategy, and define the user experience to identify what problem we're trying to solve. AI simply gets me from decision to implementation much faster, and in a more efficient manner.
However, this only works because I know what to ask for. I've spent most of my life learning what good looks like, how much a bad decision costs the business, and what clients actually need versus what they say they want. The domain knowledge, judgment, and ability to ask the right questions and catch the wrong answers... that's the part AI can't do. And honestly, that's the part most people skip when they try to use these tools without that background.
And thus, this is what this blog is about.
I'm going to write about what it actually looks like to use AI as a creative development professional. I'm not going to come at you like a LinkedIn or Twitter AI aficionado or tech bro. I'll write about how I built this site and where AI helped me, what it means to hold a job title that doesn't really fit what I actually do, what building a design system alone looks like, shipping interactive tools at a Fortune 500 company, and how I can manage to run a consultancy on 10 hours a week while working full-time and raising a one-year-old.
If you're someone who builds things for a living and you're trying to figure out how AI fits into your work without replacing your value, this blog is perfect for you. I don't have all the answers, but I have experiments, results, and an honest perspective on how I'm working with AI in my daily workflow. I believe that feels more useful than playing oracle to what AI can and can't do.
I look forward to sharing my insights, and I'll be seeing you in the next post.