📰 3 THINGS TO CHECK OUT
Config 2025: Figma product launch keynote
- At Config 2025, Figma unveiled four major new products—Sites, Make, Buzz, and Draw—doubling its portfolio and signaling a shift from design tool to end-to-end creative platform.
- Sites turns your Figma mockups into live websites (with breakpoints, CMS, and code layers), Make uses AI to turn designs into functional prototypes, Buzz streamlines content creation for non-designers, and Draw introduces expressive vector tools like texture fills, brushes, and variable strokes.
- These launches represent the clearest sign yet that Figma sees its future not just in design collaboration, but in owning the entire creation and publishing workflow.
🎤 Event 🎤: AI Prototypes that Win Stakeholders
- Join us next Friday, May 16th, at 1pm ET for an interactive session led by Designlab mentor and AI-expert Mel Hogan where you’ll learn to effectively unlock the power of AI-driven prototyping.
- Learn to use Lovable.dev and Figma together to create interactive prototypes that streamline stakeholder approval and demonstrate the power of AI in design.
- While all are welcome, this event is most appropriate for individuals with some design experience—register here to attend live or receive a recording.
How To Launch Big Complex Projects
- UX designer and engineer Vitaly Friedman explores why large-scale UX initiatives frequently exceed budgets and timelines, attributing this to human over-optimism and the unpredictable nature of complex systems.
- To address this, Friedman advocates for data-based forecasting and strong risk management, emphasizing the need to confront inherent uncertainties instead of relying solely on detailed upfront planning.
- “As people, we are inherently over-confident. It’s hard to study and process everything that can go wrong, so we tend to focus on the bright side. However, this leads to unrealistic forecasts, poorly defined goals, better options ignored, problems not spotted, and no contingencies to counteract the inevitable surprises.”
💜 PORTFOLIO INSPIRATION
Jan Dwertmann, a UX Academy graduate, centers accessibility in his UX portfolio. With Accesswave, he develops a tool to help business owners understand and meet accessibility standards, leveraging his expertise in competitive and user research to guide strategic product decisions. With e-commerce site Arabay, he redesigns UX flow to be more modern, efficient, and user-friendly, while also showcasing his strong UI design skills through intuitive and visually appealing interfaces.
Got a portfolio you love that you’d like to share with our audience? Email your suggestions to hello@designlab.com.
💡 INTERESTING STUFF...
- A Famous Painting Up Very Close
- 25 Principles for UX Productivity
- Which Creative Archetype Are You?
- Supporting Mental Health in Our Workplaces
A design isn't finished until someone is using it. — Brenda Laurel, designer
🧪 FROM THE LAB
💡 Learn More About UX Academy
We’re hosting two live informational webinar sessions next week where you can learn more about our award-winning career accelerator program, UX Academy.
We’ll discuss curriculum, mentorship, career support, financing options, and offer a live Q&A to get your questions answered. We’ll also dive into details about our beginner-friendly and flexible prerequisite course, UX Academy Foundations.
Join us either Tuesday, May 13th at 6pm ET or Thursday, May 15th at 11am ET to learn more. Select your preferred session at our registration page. Can’t attend live? Sign up to receive a recording.
💰 Share Designlab with Your Network
Do you know someone who would benefit from learning with Designlab? From courses for beginner designers just starting out, to those in the field looking to grow their skills, we offer something for everybody. Spread the word about our programs and earn cash doing it through our Affiliate program.
Sign up today and we’ll send you dedicated links so it’s easy to share our info with your network—and with our new UX Academy features, there’s never been a better time to sign up! Earn up to $725 per enrollment that you send our way.
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