The panel discussion focused on “Future of Design” Most of the panelist were forthcoming with their views on design collaboration and the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The point was why we are not using AI in design and why were Indian designers averse to the idea of design collaboration.
With time the discussion focussed primarily on AI, everybody felt it was the way to go. As a creative thinker I see, we tend to promote “design thinking” a lot. However, when the time comes to implement it in our lives we stay put. Design thinking is aimed at finding a precise resolution to a problem after studying it. And using AI in design is akin to overlooking the problem at hand.
India is a populous nation and automation is ideally feasible when there is a dearth of a workforce. Out in the West, the workforce available is costly hence they are prone to automation. Even by the design thinking standards, what they are doing is probably right.
On the contrary, our problems are different and we should empathize with the situation at hand like one of the biggest problems is unemployment and one of our core strengths is human power. So rather than relying completely on technology, we should promote handicraft and create success stories. Given the indigenous processes involved in traditional crafts, the risk of competition is also low.
The concept of automation is also based on the fact that the design industry relies heavily on an unorganized workforce. Unlike a corporate scenario where projects are executed in a time-bound manner, the level of professionalism is low. And the panelist was right in pointing it out.
However, automation is not the answer to resolve this problem. One needs to understand that when it comes to introducing new technology, a good amount of time and money has to be invested; to purchase the technology and raised a skilled pool of professionals to keep it running.
When we meet a bunch of rural, uneducated artisans who are extremely raw. From day one we start expecting them to fall in line and work as we do. Why? We should invest time and money to inculcate the values of punctuality and precision in their minds. Likewise, we need to elevate their aspirations and spoil them a bit with choices. This entire exercise of motivating them will require the use of human psychology and HRgiri
Food for thought!