AI Chases Sameness. Your Brand Deserves More.
Let's talk about something that's been coming up in almost every conversation lately: AI. And more specifically, the growing assumption that AI can, or should, replace the thinking, the strategy, and the craft that goes into building a brand that actually means something.
We get it. The world is moving fast. AI tools are everywhere, and they're doing genuinely impressive things. We're not here to pretend otherwise. But we are here to have an honest conversation about where the line is and why that line matters, especially in the kind of work we do.
The mockup that missed the point
Not long ago, a client came to us at the very start of a website project with a screenshot they'd generated using an AI tool. It was a rough layout, a quick mockup of what they imagined the site could look like. And they sent it with the best of intentions: Would this help speed things up?
We appreciated the enthusiasm. We really did. But here's what that well-meaning screenshot couldn't account for: the discovery work that informs every design decision before we ever open a file. The conversations about who their clients are, what those clients need to feel when they land on that homepage, and what action they need to take next. The brand strategy layered beneath every font choice and content hierarchy. The technical considerations our designers and developers solve behind the scenes, the ones that don't show up in a mockup but make or break a user experience. And the collective decades of expertise on our team, earned through projects just like this one.
A great website isn't fast. A great anything isn't fast. Would you walk into a beautifully designed home and assume the architect sketched it over a weekend? Would you expect a master builder to hand you the keys after a few weeks on site? Of course not. Excellence, the kind that holds up, that earns trust, that becomes a legacy, takes time. It takes iteration. It takes conversation. It takes the hard, unglamorous work of getting it right.When we put it to the test ourselves
We'll be honest: we tried it. As part of our own brand work, we ran an experiment with AI to explore typography. We pulled a reference image, something with a very specific feeling, and asked it to find us something similar. It came back with Garamond. Canela. The expected answers, the safe ones. We pushed back, refined the prompt, gave it direction, described the calligraphic details we were drawn to. And it came back with more of the same.
That's not a failure of the tool, exactly. It's just what AI does. It searches for patterns. It finds sameness. It gives you what most people have asked for before.
But typography at this level isn't about what most people have asked for. We source type from foundries around the world, and the selection process is deeply tied to concept, to meaning, to the intention behind a brand. The right typeface isn't just one that looks beautiful. It's one that carries something. That decision comes from years of practicing, studying, collecting, and caring about this work in a way that can't be compressed into a prompt.
Our experience, taste, and discernment told us to walk away from that exercise quickly. And it reminded us, clearly, that what we offer our clients is something entirely different.
Where we actually stand on AI
Here's what we believe: technology should make us better at the human parts of this work, not replace them.
We're not in denial about the pace of change. AI is here. It's evolving. And used thoughtfully, it can be a remarkable tool for efficiency, clearing the administrative brush so our team can spend more time in the creative and strategic work that only experience can deliver. We're paying close attention, and we're selectively integrating tools that help us move faster without cutting corners on the things that matter.
But the soul of this work? That can't be automated. The instinct to know when a brand needs to be bolder or softer. The wisdom to tell a client what they don't want to hear because it's what their business actually needs. The ability to translate decades of industry relationships and hard-won knowledge into a visual identity or a website that resonates, genuinely and deeply, with the people it's meant to reach. That's irreplaceable.
Our clients come to us not just because we produce beautiful work, but because of the thinking behind it. Because of the questions we ask before we ever open a design file. Because of the team we've built, the relationships we've earned, and the standards we hold ourselves to.
AI didn't build any of that. And it can't protect it, either.
So yes, let's embrace the tools that help us do our best work more efficiently. And let's be equally clear about what we're not willing to trade in the process: the strategy, the craft, the conversation, and the irreplaceable value of the human experience. That's not resistance to change. That's knowing what you stand for.
Roxanne Hanna, Founder, Hanna Creative Co.