IBM has reported significant gains in productivity through the preliminary testing of Adobe’s generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools. These tools, capable of generating images based on text prompts, were utilized by IBM in marketing campaigns. This marks an early exploration of Adobe’s strategy to create AI systems trained on proprietary data, offering legal assurances against lawsuits and targeting larger enterprises.

Billy Seabrook, the Global Chief Design Officer for IBM’s consulting arm, shared insights into the impact of Adobe’s tools on their design processes. The 1600 designers in Seabrook’s unit leveraged these tools to rapidly generate ideas and create diverse variants for different segments of marketing campaigns. The time required for an end-to-end design cycle saw a substantial reduction, shrinking from two weeks to a mere two days, according to Seabrook.

IBM anticipates a remarkable tenfold increase in designer productivity as a result of employing these AI tools. This enhancement will allow designers to allocate more time to activities like brainstorming and creating storyboards, rather than dealing with minor design variations. In the short term, the impact on employment in the design industry is expected to involve existing teams handling increased workloads.

Seabrook outlined the prioritization process in addressing significant challenges and the potential for existing teams to focus on other critical issues. However, uncertainties loom over the long-term implications for employment. Recent IBM survey data indicates that business leaders recognize the growing importance of designers, viewing them as tastemakers and quality checkers for generative AI output. Yet, concerns persist regarding the potential decrease in jobs, and the industry is closely watching how these developments unfold.