Preparing for the Future Squad - How to Get Ready for the Shift from UX to AX
We’re heading into a new era of product development. AI isn’t just showing up in our tools, it’s reshaping the way we work. The traditional UX-led product squad is no longer enough. We need to think beyond user flows and interface layers. We need to build squads that are ready for AX — Augmented Experience, where AI becomes a core member of the team, not just an add-on.
So how do we get ready?
From UX to AX
For years, we’ve built around the idea of user-centered design. The “double diamond” process helped teams explore and converge around human needs. But that model assumes a static team solving for a static user problem.
In an AI-augmented world, that model breaks down.
AX (Augmented Experience) is about creating systems that are adaptive, context-aware, and continuously learning. It’s not just about good UX — it’s about designing with intelligence, feedback loops, and automation at the core.
This shift requires more than new tools. It calls for a fundamental rethink of the squad itself.
The Current Squad Model
Here’s how many teams still operate:
A Product Manager gathers requirements and drives prioritisation
A Designer runs discovery, mapping user journeys and wireframes
A Developer builds out the functionality
A Tester verifies quality
And a Design System sits passively in the background, providing components and tokens
The rituals are familiar: sprint planning, standups, demos. Everything revolves around a backlog of tickets, linear timelines, and handovers.
But as systems grow more intelligent, and expectations rise, this model starts to creak.
What Needs to Change?
To move from UX to AX, teams need to evolve across three key dimensions:
1. Roles
We need new hybrid roles that blend product thinking with data, systems, and AI.
Prompt engineers and model trainers will be embedded into squads
Designers will become curators of adaptive interfaces, not just creators of screens
Developers will orchestrate APIs, agents, and pipelines, not just front-end logic
Design systems will move from passive kits to intelligent platforms that offer real-time recommendations, analytics, and automation
2. Rituals
Our ceremonies need to become more dynamic and data -informed.
Backlogs should evolve with AI input — continuously prioritising based on usage, behaviour, and feedback
Planning should include model readiness, training cycles, and experience tuning
Review and QA will need to consider AI explainability, trust, and performance — not just visuals and bugs
3. Mindset
Perhaps most importantly, we need to shift our thinking.
From outputs to systems
From interfaces to interactions
From fixed roles to fluid collaboration
From human-centered to human + machine-centered design
The Future Squad: A Hypothesis
Imagine a product squad of the near future:
A Product Lead sets outcomes, guided by real-time product telemetry
A Design Strategist works alongside an AI partner to generate flows, validate concepts, and test variants
A Tech Architect integrates foundation models, curates data, and governs agent logic
A System Librarian maintains intelligent components and tokens that self-improve based on usage
An Ethics Lead ensures responsible use of AI, monitors bias, and protects user trust
Around them is a living design system that isn’t just a source of truth, it’s a source of intelligence.
Getting Ready
This shift won’t happen overnight. But it’s already underway. And if you're in a leadership role, whether in product, design, or engineering, the time to prepare is now.
Start by asking:
Are our teams ready to work with AI, not just use it?
Are our design systems set up to evolve into intelligent platforms?
Are our roles and rituals helping us move faster, learn more, and stay adaptive?
AX is not a trend. It’s the future of product development. Let’s build teams that are ready for it.
Want to discuss how your teams can evolve toward AX?
Let’s talk — or follow along for more thinking at angusewing.com.
