The AI Era: Why I Post on Zenn as a Designer

Introduction — Starting with a Question

With the evolution of generative AI, it is becoming commonplace to generate UI and visuals instantly. For example, services like "Nano Banana" momentarily take over the "initial draft creation" role that designers have held for many years.

In the midst of these environmental changes, the boundary between designers and engineers is rapidly blurring, and the roles themselves are being redefined.

In this situation, why post articles on a platform like "Zenn"?
Why does a "designer" talk about AI and academic research?
This article is an attempt to respond to those questions.

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As a Designer — Background and Environmental Changes

For over 20 years, I have been involved in design in areas such as DTP, branding, and web development. Design always changes along with the "environment." Moving from print to web and then to mobile applications, I have used new tools and explored new ways of expression.

And currently, the biggest environmental change is AI.
As AI creates "places where human thought meets," designers need to expand their roles not just as "people who refine looks," but as "people who design the relationship between humans and AI."

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Approach — Bridging Language and Culture to AI

A common research approach is to treat Large Language Models (LLMs) as subjects of observation and verify the validity of linguistic theories.
Research that confirms the universality of word order or investigates to what extent a model can reproduce syntactic structures is typical. This can be seen as a safe, orthodox path that is easy to evaluate academically.

On the other hand, the approach here is slightly different.
I emphasize "applying insights from human language and culture to AI design itself." For example:

• Ambiguity brought by Japanese-specific "no" chaining and honorific systems
  Example: A chain of "no" such as "kaisha no kikaku no ashita no shiryou no sakusei" (creating tomorrow's materials for the company's planning) creates unintended interpretations for the AI.

• Difficulty of supplementation in a culture that assumes implicit context sharing
  Example: Probabilistic switching occurs between segments, such as "vigor (expert tone) → apology (first-person 'boku'/gender issues)," affecting the content and impression.

• The perspective of structuring prompts as UI rather than simple input text
  Example: Proposing "Mapping the Prompt (MTP)." A framework for intuitively organizing complex prompts using color and philosophical placement.

From these perspectives, I position "Mapping the Prompt (MTP)" as a research theme.
This is an attempt to redesign the prompt not just as text, but as an interface that connects humans and AI.

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Key Themes — Design and Interfaces in the AI Era

The following areas are at the heart of the themes I address.

1. Language Gaps
   There is a significant gap between English-centric AI development and multilingual environments, including Japanese. Design guidelines to bridge this gap are required.

2. Prompt Structuring
   By viewing prompts as part of the UI rather than just text, we can organize user thoughts and enhance the consistency of AI responses. MTP is a concrete example of this.

3. Integration of Eastern and Western Thought
   Moving between Western analytical frameworks and Eastern relationship-oriented philosophies, I am exploring ways to make collaboration with AI more human-like.

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Methodology — How I Communicate

Looking back at the characteristics of my writing, several patterns emerge.

• Hierarchical Disclosure
  Starting from observable phenomena, progressing to technical analysis, further expanding into cultural and philosophical backgrounds, and finally presenting practical solutions. It is a structure that makes it easy to deepen understanding step-by-step.

• Scaffolding Techniques
  Bridging difficult concepts using metaphors and concrete examples. For instance, explaining the effects of prompts through the double-slit experiment or illustrating the importance of structuring with architectural metaphors.

• Balance of Academicism and Practicality
  While referencing cognitive science and design theory, I link these to actual UI implementation and prompt operations. I am conscious of creating a form that is open to both the academic and industrial worlds.

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Why Write a Paper?

Simply publishing as an article or OSS may lead to it remaining as just an "interesting idea." However, by systematizing it through the format of a research paper, it remains as a knowledge asset and becomes a foundation referred to by international academic communities and industry.

In particular, the "cultural contexts," "multilingual support," and "UI design" handled by MTP are indispensable challenges in future AI research. I believe that submitting this as a paper is a way to gain acceptance from industry researchers as an approach that directly addresses actual user challenges.

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Future Directions and Invitation for Collaboration

The activities I want to pursue moving forward are as follows:

• Writing MTP into a paper: Presenting it in academic settings and verifying reproducibility
• Quantitative verification of Japanese prompt issues: Clarifying the impact of ambiguity on responses
• Development of an interdisciplinary framework: Accumulating new insights across HCI, cognitive science, and design

However, this cannot be achieved alone. I am not seeking a role where I stand in front and speak; I aim only to steer and maintain consistency.
That is why I am recruiting research collaborators and co-authors.
I believe that knowledge grows into something more universal only through collaboration.

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Conclusion

In the AI era, why do I, as a designer, post articles on Zenn?
The answer lies in designing a new relationship between humans and technology while adapting to environmental changes like AI.

Through these articles, I am attempting to share ideas, spark discussion, and expand the space for collaboration.

Zenn might be the right place for that.
I hope to gradually give shape to the possibilities of design in the AI era.