Core77

[tbdlabs]

Hi Everyone,
I'm a Robotics Engineer and I work really closely with a group of industrial, interaction, and visual designers. Some of our projects involve applying Machine Learning to make products smarter. The designers I work with are really interested in the field, but:

Are there more designers interested in Machine Learning? If so, where can I find them?

[KenoLeon]

Hello there:

I have a big interest in A.I. ( neural networks, machine learning and search), Although I mainly focus on memory and cognition on the human side and novel applications on the software side, you can read a bit about my approach here:Memory and the Machine - Medium

Having said that, I mostly keep design activities separated from A.I. ( some software development crosses over with design in UI/UX and FED which sometimes is my day job).

Your project sounds very interesting, I am not aware of others here into machine learning, although there was a recent discussion on a related A.I. topic here:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=35594&p=236646#p236636

best,
-k

[tbdlabs]

Hey Keno,
Thanks for your note and for the links. Your page has very interesting points about memory. Machine Learning is a very interesting field. I'm fascinated with the idea of combining design and artificial intelligence to make products smarter.

Why do you think there aren't that many designers interested in the field?

[ralphzoontjens]

Hi there,

I think this is mainly a case of walls between design and engineering departments and educational programmes.
Until a few years ago it was not easy being both a product designer and programmer creating intelligent products and systems.
But now the tools are there to rapidly create intelligent interactive product prototypes so the time is right for hybrid designers.
It's a great advantage to combine the two fields since it can speed up innovation, also the product's form and intelligence are interdependent, for example placement of sensors is key to developing interesting behaviors as seen with Braitenberg vehicles.

I was educated with both AI programming and classic ID skills, but you also need to find the right projects and companies with the right ideas to work with if you want to be able to use these skills. I am still very interested in this field, especially in giving products brain-like intelligence so that mostly through unsupervised learning, adaptive behavior emerges.

[Brian_Donlin]

Why do you think there aren't that many designers interested in the field?

I think it has to do with the fact that a lot of designers--probably the majority--are working on projects that aren't high-tech enough to incorporate machine learning. I'm interested, but a lot of my projects aren't even electronic.

This is right on the money:

you also need to find the right projects and companies with the right ideas to work with if you want to be able to use these skills

Maybe try looking around on Behance for designers with AI-related projects? Also, I bet a lot of the bigger corporations are interested. Anyone doing appliances (Whirlpool, Bosch) is probably already researching it.

[KenoLeon]

Why do you think there aren't that many designers interested in the field?

Speculating, I can't speak for others, there could be an impression of no immediate apparent economical or career advancing benefit while the costs of learning A.I. are high (mostly in learning how to program,researching and time); there could also be some lack of understanding of what A.I. can add to a product or seen as something for other department to deal with in the specifics.

I like to think of it as somehow analogous to the relationship with electrical engineering, you know what the electronic product does and how it contributes to the product/project, it's limits, what you want it to do next etc, but you'd rather have someone else do the actual engineering/testing/etc, so you can focus on the other 20 things the product needs or other projects, not to say that there aren't designers that have a lot of knowledge on circuits and components.

Finally, I also think interest will come (if it comes in this new batch of A.I.'s) with a successful product, same thing for Iot products.