Whose freedom is it anyway?
Artificial Intelligence and the old promise of the emancipatory machine, from the washing machine, the personal computer, the internet, and social media.
our collective futures
critical reflections on design, tech, and systems
Latest posts
The semiophage
There's an entity that feeds on meaning and leaves something that resembles meaning without carrying it. It consumes the original, the rare and unrepeatable thing, and circulates the degraded copy in its place. Strange things are happening on the internet, so be careful!
Design was never the bottleneck
Design knows how to make things that do not yet exist. The work ahead may be to apply that capacity to the profession's own institutional life
Identity loss
UX is pronounced dead every day. You probably read the headlines. And of course you don't believe them, but have you noticed something is currently... off, regardless?
Antinomies of design
Let's theorize design responses towards emerging and interconnected crises in 2026.
A (short) critical history of artificial intelligence from a computational fallacy to tech fascism
Just before we wrap up 2025, we take a dive into a critical history of AI. This is an extended version of a short talk I gave in Helsinki at an event called Critical AI.
Building possibility
The spaces where we once gathered to imagine alternatives have been systematically dismantled. Empty buildings sit locked while communities search for places to meet. The architecture of possibility must be constructed and we have work to do.
Don't panic! Designing against dread
What is critical design and can it provide the lead for better sensemaking? We explore how critical design as cultural cartography makes visible the social relations that commercial design naturalizes, creating entry points into complex discussions about values, power, and futures.
The infrastructure of meaninglessness
Listen, there are two realities that we should be aware of. AI exists to make your job obsolete because the alternative is that AI makes managers obsolete. Let me try to break down this theory, which is very simple in its premise: those who control the technology will never allow
The spectre of good design
Today's design leader holds an impossible position, performing care work within extractive systems that optimize for engagement over well-being. This cannot be resolved through better processes or ethical frameworks; it should be a condition within which design's potential emerges.
Art tends left
Curiously, art gravitates toward questioning and dissent because art's essential function is to make the familiar strange, revealing the contingency hiding beneath what appears natural and inevitable. This is why radical art like Picasso's Guernica retains its urgent vitality across decades.
Platform capitalism always destroys what it claims to enable
Substack's latest steps illustrate a predictable trend for venture-backed platforms. Migrating from Substack to Ghost despite the real costs demonstrates a refusal to adhere to platform discipline. Writers must choose between optimizing for audience size and keeping ownership of their work.
Radical responsibility: a love letter
Fragments of care and responsible design
Design's handmaiden role
A professional journey from craft to commodity
The synthetic elephant in the room
When half of the public believes your technology is the problem