Breaking Bias with AI: The Design Revolution

Today’s update is brought to you by Bartosz Białek, Design Director at Netguru.

Bias in design is one of the biggest barriers to creating truly inclusive products. Often, these biases are unconscious, hidden in data patterns, workflows, or even designer assumptions. But bias doesn’t have to define the end result.

There’s a lot of talk out there about how biased algos result in biased AI. Today, I want to talk about the opposite – how AI can help us, designers, get fair, unbiased outcomes.   

With the right tools, designers can identify and address biases at every step of the design process. 

Here’s how AI has been changing this:

1) Revealing bias in data The datasets we work with are often imperfect, containing the same biases we’re trying to avoid. AI tools like Google’s What-If Tool help designers analyze datasets and detect hidden issues – like uneven gender or racial representation in training data. These insights allow designers to pinpoint where their designs might unintentionally exclude users.

2) Making accessibility easy Accessibility often gets overlooked until late in the design process – or worse, ignored altogether. But tools like Stark simplify the process, helping designers evaluate color contrast, font sizes, and overall usability for people with disabilities. This ensures that products are more accessible to everyone from the start.

3) Guiding ethical content decisions AI doesn’t just tackle the visual side of design – it also plays a role in content. OpenAI moderation tools are designed to analyze whether AI-generated content could unintentionally harm or offend users. This ensures that the messaging behind a design remains as inclusive as its structure.

But here’s the most important part, AI isn’t here to replace designers. It’s a tool for better decision-making. The human designer remains at the center, using AI insights to ensure inclusivity, accessibility, and ethical practices.

This is what I call “a mindset shift.” 

Tools like the What-If Tool and Stark provide the data, but the responsibility to design for everyone still lies with us. By combining technology and intentional design choices, we can build products that don’t just meet standards but genuinely work for everyone.

Want to see how AI can transform your design process? Reach out.

Best,

Bartosz