Stacy Thorwart, Founder, The Intelligent Designer
From Barriers to Entry by SANDOW Design Group, digby, and SURROUND
June 3, 2026 · 49 min · Season 4 · Episode 6
About this episode
Stacy Thorwart discusses AI adoption in the design industry and the evolving role of designers in collaboration with intelligent tools.
Beyond the Prompt This week Andrew welcomes Stacy Thorwart, AI educator, founder of The Intelligent Designer, and a fast-growing voice in the design technology space whose social platforms now reach tens of thousands of designers learning how to navigate AI. After years working with designers at Steelcase—and later helping lead global AI strategy—Stacy stepped into entrepreneurship to help the design industry move beyond curiosity and fear toward practical adoption. Her platform and community focus on a simple shift: AI literacy isn’t just about writing better prompts, it’s about understanding how designers collaborate with intelligent tools. Andrew and Stacy discuss why many firms struggle with AI adoption, how leadership and culture influence experimentation, and why early “AI wins” are often the key to momentum. They also explore how the designer’s role may evolve—from hands-on creator to manager of AI agents and digital collaborators—while keeping creativity, context, and human judgment firmly at the center of the process. Connect with our host, Andrew Lane, on LinkedIn Follow Stacy Thorwart on LinkedIn References and resources The Intelligent Designer Get in touch with us at…
People in this episode
Host: Andrew Lane
Guest: Stacy Thorwart
Topics covered
- AI adoption
- design technology
- AI literacy
- collaboration with AI
- design industry
- entrepreneurship
Keywords
- AI
- design
- technology
- creativity
- collaboration
- entrepreneurship
- AI literacy
Sponsors
Arktura
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Intelligent Designer, Steelcase
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