The State of UX in 2023: A vibe shift is coming

The 9th edition of The State of UX report is here: a critical look at our industry based on 1k+ articles published and shared with our 500k+ subscribers in 2022.

In culture, as well as in design, things sometimes change at an accelerated pace, and a once-dominant social wavelength can suddenly start to feel dated. The year 2023 brings the culmination of various changes in the realms of technology, behavior, and society that have been underway since before COVID. As designers, instead of simply flocking from one new thing to the next, this is the time to think critically about the direction our industry is heading — and the path we want to walk ourselves.

Topics covered:

• Industry:
  How after a few years of unrealistically fast growth, #layoffs are a specter haunting our industry.
• Business:
  When budgets are tight, the case for investing in design needs to be even tighter.
• Careers:
  How shrinking headcounts increase the demand for generalist designers and hands-on leaders.
• Collaboration:
  How too many circular conversations and not enough decision-making is undermining design work.
• Community:
  Social media influencers have replaced design researchers and authors—and now it’s the algorithm that’s driving the design discourse.
• Aesthetics:
  While web2 keeps trying to make technology look and feel more human, web3 tries to make technology look more… technological.
• Technology:
  Artificial intelligence is making its way to our design workflow faster than we’re ready to accept.
• Tools:
  Design tools are evolving to make us spend less time moving around boxes, and more time having the right conversations.
• Life:
  Pushing ourselves too hard is breaking us as individuals. It’s time to recalibrate our priorities if we want to be here for the long game.

To see the report:

The State of UX in 2023

Inspired by the work and ideas of:
Allison P. Davis, Sean Monahan, Roger Lee, Alex Wilhelm, Nathaniel Mott, Jeff Goldschrafe, Jim Harter, Matthias Dittrich, Chuánqí Sun, Jan Takacs, Jennifer Elias, Kathryn Moody, Elizabeth Dwoskin, Faiz Siddiqui, Gerrit De Vynck, Jeremy B. Merrill, Isa Watson, Sarah Todd, Jennifer Faull, Chris Ashby, Mahan Mehrvarz, Shannon Rhodes, Nat Rubio-Licht, Michelle Ma, Garron Engstrom, Aly Blenkin, Chuck Rice, Jerry Chang, Fedora Devena, John Cutler, Jiri Mocicka, Michael Mignano, Vasudha Mamtani, Zizi Papacharissi, Rachel Hawley, Luciano Infanti, Nathan Baschez, Douglas Rushkoff, Ahmed Hamoudy, Drew Harwell, Daley Wilhelm, Celine Lenoble, David Serrault, Antonio Cao, Darren Yeo, Teisanu Tudor, Alen Faljic, Molly White, Thor, Jenny Odell, Arjun Kharpal, Ryan Browne, Jeff Horwitz, Salvador Rodriguez, Meghan Bobrowsky, Liron Shapira.

We dedicate this project to all the readers, authors, and friends of the UX Collective. Thank you for another year.