Why should designers deliberately slow down when using AI in their work?

Quick Answer: AI speeds up actions but equally demands we slow down our thinking. Designers report AI is diminishing creativity, researchers find insights feeling thinner and bias harder to catch, and leaders see teams moving faster but thinking less. Ethics, creativity, and trust only exist in the pause. A YES-AND approach honours what both human judgement and AI speed bring to the table.

Key Characteristics:

Designers report AI is diminishing their creativity; researchers find insights thinner and bias harder to catch
Ethics, creativity, and trust only exist in 'the pause' between action and reflection
This is a YES-AND approach: AI offers scale and speed, humans offer judgement and conscience
The magic happens when teams honour both speed and intentional reflection rather than optimising solely for velocity

Real Example:

Riley Coleman describes feedback from their professional community: designers report AI is diminishing their creativity, researchers say insights feel thinner and bias is harder to catch, and leaders observe teams moving faster but thinking less. Coleman notes AI helped them refine the very article arguing for strategic friction, demonstrating the YES-AND approach in practice rather than being anti-productivity.

Article

3 Reasons Strategic Friction is Key to AI

I’ve been thinking about what’s getting lost in AI conversations Everyone’s optimising for speed.

Riley Coleman

November 28, 2025·2 min read

I’ve been thinking about what’s getting lost in AI conversations

Everyone’s optimising for speed. Faster outputs. Faster decisions. Faster everything.

But designers tell me AI is diminishing their creativity.

Researchers tell me insights feel thinner, bias harder to catch.

Leaders tell me their teams are moving faster but thinking less.

These aren’t irrational fears. The research confirms it.

Here’s what I’ve come to believe:

If AI speeds up our actions, it equally demands we slow down our thinking.

This isn’t anti-productivity (far from it – AI helped me refine this email).

It’s a YES – AND approach.

One that respects what both partners bring to the table.

AI offers scale and speed – we simply can’t match
Humans offer judgement and conscience.

The magic happens when we honour both.

But that requires intention. It requires the pause.

Ethics. Creativity. Trust. They only exist in the pause.

As many of you know; I’ve built a programme for product and design professionals who refuse to let these things disappear.

Human-Centred Ethical AI Course + AI for Productivity Course Bundle

Not another course just about AI tools and prompts (though you get that)

A space to develop the judgement, the frameworks, and the confidence to use AI in ways that protect what matters.

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If you’ve felt something slipping since AI entered your workflow, you’re not imagining it.

This is for the people who want to move thoughtfully, not just quickly.

For design professionals who refuse to choose between Innovation and Responsibility.

Hope to see you inside.

Riley

P.S. Early access pricing ends 7 days. After that, it’s gone until the next cohort opens.

Written by

Riley Coleman

Founder, AI Flywheel

Riley helps design leaders build trustworthy AI experiences. They have trained 304+ designers and led 7 cohorts of the Trustworthy AI programme.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is strategic friction the same as being anti-AI or anti-productivity?

No. The article explicitly states this is not anti-productivity. Riley Coleman used AI to refine the article itself. Strategic friction is a YES-AND approach that respects what both partners bring: AI offers scale and speed that humans cannot match, while humans offer judgement and conscience that AI lacks.

What evidence is there that AI speed is causing problems for design teams?

The article cites direct feedback from professionals: designers report AI is diminishing their creativity, researchers say insights feel thinner and bias is harder to catch, and leaders observe their teams moving faster but thinking less.

How do you implement strategic friction in practice?

The article argues that ethics, creativity, and trust only exist in deliberate pauses between actions. It advocates for developing judgement, frameworks, and confidence to use AI in ways that protect what matters, rather than adopting every AI tool as quickly as possible.