The Convergence of User Experience (UX), Artificial Intelligence Experience (AX) & Developer Experience (DX)
And their influence on the foundational “primitives” of application development is worth unpacking…
User Experience (UX), Artificial Intelligence Experience (AX) and Developer Experience (DX) are intertwining in exciting ways, and their influence on the foundational primitives of application development is worth unpacking.
Starting with UX, it’s traditionally been about crafting intuitive, enjoyable interactions for end-users.
But as AI becomes more pervasive, we’re seeing this evolve into AX — where the focus shifts to how users perceive and interact with artificial intelligent systems.
This could mean designing AI that feels transparent and trustworthy, or ensuring its responses align with human expectations.
The challenge is balancing the magic of AI with usability — too much opacity and users feel lost; too little, and it’s just another clunky tool.
DX, which is all about making developers’ lives easier. And, the introduction of AI into the developer / maker / builder world has ushered in a new era of builders with high expectations of the AI augmented developer UI’s coding their intensions.
AI-powered tools — like GitHub Copilot or automated testing frameworks — are changing how developers work with primitives (application and system building blocks and tools).
Low-level building blocks like functions, APIs, or data structures.
With AI, DX isn’t just about streamlining workflows anymore; it’s about enabling devs to think at a higher level of abstraction.
For instance, instead of hand-coding a sorting algorithm, a dev might lean on an AI-optimised library that adapts to context — shifting the primitive from raw code to a smarter, dynamic module.
This impacts primitives directly. Historically, primitives were static — think loops, conditionals, or basic I/O operations. But AI introduces adaptive primitives: think machine-learned models as reusable components, or APIs that evolve based on usage patterns.
The line between a lower-level blocks and a sophisticated tool blurs when your primitive can, say, self-optimise or predict edge cases.
Why This Intersection Matters
- UX ensures the system is intuitive and enjoyable for the end-user.
- AX focuses on how users interact with AI, ensuring transparency and trust.
- DX streamlines the developer’s workflow, leveraging AI to abstract away low-level tasks.
At their intersection, you get a system where:
- Users experience intelligent, adaptive interfaces that feel natural (UX + AX).
- Developers work with smarter, AI-driven tools and primitives that reduce complexity (DX + AX).
- AI acts as the glue, enhancing both the user’s interaction and the developer’s efficiency while being designed to be trustworthy and usable (AX bridging UX and DX).
Chief Evangelist @ Kore.ai | I’m passionate about exploring the intersection of AI and language. From Language Models, AI Agents to Agentic Applications, Development Frameworks & Data-Centric Productivity Tools, I share insights and ideas on how these technologies are shaping the future.
