Humans are central to design. Design is a verb; design is human. It addresses human needs, wants, and dreams. It’s the action of reframing, innovating, executing, and curating as we work to find what’s new, what fits, what excites us. AI is great (and getting better) at execution. But human creativity is the driver, humanity the guiding light.

AI-​based design isn’t the future — it’s here and it’s now. The question is no longer “if” or “when,” but “how” and “why.” If adopted thoughtfully, AI can act as our creative partner, working alongside us to add to our human creative capacities. Monotype’s experiments using AI, though early days, have produced amazing results. Expect more and expect it soon.

Typographic abundance makes new tools essential. Today, we have more typography available to us than ever before. This makes finding the type we want difficult. Seasoned typographers can only remember a couple thousand fonts by eye. AI can learn them all — and can and will help non-​type-​obsessives find their very particular needle in a very large haystack.

Don’t just expect more fonts — expect to see more lettering, too. AI is getting pretty great at lettering, creating beautiful letterform lockups. It will get better and better. Look for a future where expressive letters are called into being without the use of fonts.

Typography is becoming more personal. Printed type provides a standard, static experience that is the same for everyone. This gives designers control, allowing them to craft a particular experience. There are advantages to knowing how your audience will encounter your work. But user needs can vary widely. AI provides us with the possibility of a more personalized digital future, with dynamic text that can respond to our individual preferences and needs, changing fonts, spacing, color, design, and even language to fit our circumstances. What impacts will we see in the worlds of design and culture as we shift to more individualized typographic experiences?