For the past 4,000 years, the written word has been our trusty companion, helping us share information and ideas with one another. Millennia later, words are still the best way to foster human connection.
As we step into the future of UX, I’m seeing the rise of conversational interfaces powered by natural language processing (NLP). OpenAI’s Chatbot Plugins are an exciting leap forward (now in pre-release), allowing us to easily interact through chat with existing platforms. This is especially true after the Friday announcement from the founder of Hubspot, Dharmesh Shah, of his purchase chat.com for tens of millions of dollars because of his belief in chatUX as the future of interaction design.
If ChatGPT is the iPhone, plug-ins are the Apple Store
Companies like Expedia, Instacart, Wolfram, Zapier, and Kayak are already developing GPT plugins, with many more coming. This shift will reshape the UX profession in several ways: a diminished focus on traditional user interfaces and products conceived as conversations rather than a series of screen interactions. In this article, we’ll delve into the potential impact of ChatGPT Plugins on the UX profession and the opportunities and challenges it brings.
Less UI, More UX
As AI chat becomes better, the role of traditional user interfaces must change. ChatGPT Plugins let users talk to apps using natural language, making chat UX a reality. This has a big effect on UX professionals since they’ll need to focus on creating engaging, conversational experiences instead of visually appealing interfaces.
In this new world, UX professionals must relearn about how people use their words. Moving from graphical interfaces to conversational ones means understanding how users interact with technology and the context and limitations of these interactions. By embracing this change, UX designers can make stronger connections between users and technology.
Talk to It
As AI chatbots become the norm, UX professionals must think of their products as conversations instead of screens and buttons. This means focusing on the natural flow of human dialogue and the importance of our user’s context.
In this conversational world, UX designers need to see the user’s journey as an ongoing chat with the product. Creating engaging conversational flows means understanding language, tone, and user intent. This involves designing scripts and conversation patterns that change and respond to user inputs, making the experience seamless and personal.
UX professionals must work closely with developers, data scientists, and content strategists to make a strong conversational ecosystem. Working together will help improve the AI chatbots’ understanding of natural language, making them more accurate and sensitive to user needs.
Context matters (again)
In the age of conversational interfaces, not all features work well as natural language experiences. UX professionals must figure out which features fit NLP and change their designs as needed. This might mean making complex processes simpler or breaking them into smaller steps.
To do this, UX designers need to learn about the strengths and weaknesses of NLP technologies. By understanding AI chatbots, they can make smart choices about which features to prioritize in conversational interfaces.
User feedback is very important in this new design world. UX professionals must carefully listen to users, changing and improving the conversational experience based on their thoughts and language skills.
Opportunity or threat?
As user interfaces evolve from traditional forms to chat-based interactions, UX designers face a significant challenge. How can we leverage this new model to engage with their global users without compromising our roles? Focusing on clear and effective communication becomes crucial in chat UX, as it presents both unprecedented opportunities and potential threats.
In response to this challenge, AI technology provides UX designers with the opportunity to make more intentional choices regarding language and symbols — the essence of UX. In a world characterized by individual screens, selecting the right words becomes vital for connecting users. By merging clarity and simplicity with warmth and empathy, AI-enhanced UX professionals can foster more meaningful interactions among users across the globe, fully capitalizing on the potential of chat-based interfaces.