TLDR Index
TLDR Design

TLDR DESIGN 2025-09-23

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02OPINIONS & TUTORIALS

RIP DESIGN AGENCY

AI has fundamentally broken the traditional design agency model by enabling cheap, fast, and high-quality work simultaneously for the first time. The proposed "Anti-Design Agency" approach embraces AI tools, works transparently in public, and charges lower prices due to increased efficiency. Traditional agencies that ignore AI will become irrelevant as designers who leverage AI can deliver faster results at more accessible price points.

adplist.substack.com4 min read

THE RIGHT SIZE PROJECT

Freelancers and small agencies should focus on "right-sized" projects rather than chasing big jobs they're not ready for. The key is delivering 10× ROI by charging clients 10% of the value created—for example, charging $1,000 for work that generates $10,000 in revenue or savings. Success comes from starting with smaller projects where you can guarantee outsized results, then gradually scaling up as you build proof and confidence in delivering larger value.

linkedin.com7 min read

WELCOME TO THE ENTRY-LEVEL VOID: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN JUNIOR DESIGN JOBS DISAPPEAR?

Entry-level design jobs are disappearing as AI, budget cuts, and remote work erode traditional apprenticeships, leaving newcomers to rely on unpaid gigs, cold outreach, and self-driven projects. What emerges is an uneven system where only the well-connected or persistent succeed, while AI accelerates learning but risks weakening creative foundations—pushing originality, peer networks, and self-started paths to replace the old career ladder.

itsnicethat.com2 min read

03LAUNCHES & TOOLS

GPS FOR COLOR

Volume turns color selection from a flat swatch hunt into a sculptural, 3D design journey. Explore, build, and manipulate color structures as tangible objects and reveal hidden harmonies no flat picker can show.

volumecolor.ioTool

REACT BITS

An open source collection of animated, interactive, and fully customizable React components for building memorable websites.

reactbits.devTool

04MISCELLANEOUS

CHAMPIONING QUALITY THROUGH CULTURE

Quality emerges from well-designed systems and processes rather than being added at the end of projects. When systems enforce excellence and collaboration, teams can move quickly without sacrificing standards because clarity becomes built into every checkpoint. Building this culture requires long-term investment in feedback loops and accountability, making quality a natural byproduct rather than a competing priority with speed.

trevorgrogers.substack.com2 min read

DESIGNING LOOPS, NOT PATHS

Traditional workflow-based design is too rigid for real-world unpredictability, while loop-based systems use continuous feedback to sense, decide, act, and adapt. By keeping humans in the loop and enabling nested layers of oversight, these systems build resilience, foster trust, and support smarter, more flexible collaboration between people and AI.

medium.com8 min read

"SOME UK BRANDS ARE DEFINITELY TIRED," KOTO'S JAMES GREENFIELD ON THE STATE OF BRANDING TODAY

Koto's James Greenfield argues that strong branding requires discipline, distinctiveness, and context—work should feel “uncopyable,” evolve or revolutionize depending on a brand's state, and reflect real consumer experiences. From lessons in Amazon's refresh to critiques of UK legacy brands, he stresses that creativity with attitude, long-term thinking, and storytelling rooted in culture and business realities are what make brands memorable and trusted.

creativebloq.com9 min read