Specs Are The New Source Code (feat. Thomas Watkins, NN/G Guest Instructor) | EP 65
3.8K views · 2026-10-21
Interaction & UX
AI has made building software easy. Deciding what to build is another story. When founders and product teams can vibe-code a working product in a weekend, where does design add value? In this episode, Therese Fessenden welcomes back design psychologist Thomas Watkins, founder of 3Leaf and NN/G guest instructor, to talk about why the bottleneck in product development has shifted from building to deciding, how specs are becoming the source of truth for AI-built products, and why taste and research matter more than ever.
🔗 About Thomas & 3Leaf LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/watkinsthomas/ 3Leaf: https://www.3leaf.consulting/
🎙️ The Design Psychologist Podcast https://designpsychologist.buzzsprout.com/2395044
🎧 Thomas's Previous Episode 57. The Next Decade of UX: Why Psychology Matters More Than Ever https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/57-the-next-decade-of-ux-why-psychology-matters/id1527196035?i=1000747025097
🧠 Thomas's Course with NN/g Writing Specs for AI-Built Products https://www.nngroup.com/contents/self-paced-courses/writing-specs-for-ai-built-products/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65
📚 Related NN/g Articles & Courses UX-Context Design: Using UX Knowledge to Inform AI-Generated Design https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ux-context-design/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Prompt to Design Interfaces: Why Vague Prompts Fail and How to Fix Them https://www.nngroup.com/articles/vague-prototyping/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 GenUI vs. Vibe Coding: Who's Designing? https://www.nngroup.com/articles/genui-vs-vibe/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Good from Afar, But Far from Good: AI Prototyping in Real Design Contexts https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-prototyping/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Context Architecture https://www.nngroup.com/articles/context-architecture/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Context Libraries: How AI Power Users Manage Context Engineering https://www.nngroup.com/articles/context-libraries/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65
TYXU5WMUAXAS8GTC
🔗 About Thomas & 3Leaf LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/watkinsthomas/ 3Leaf: https://www.3leaf.consulting/
🎙️ The Design Psychologist Podcast https://designpsychologist.buzzsprout.com/2395044
🎧 Thomas's Previous Episode 57. The Next Decade of UX: Why Psychology Matters More Than Ever https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/57-the-next-decade-of-ux-why-psychology-matters/id1527196035?i=1000747025097
🧠 Thomas's Course with NN/g Writing Specs for AI-Built Products https://www.nngroup.com/contents/self-paced-courses/writing-specs-for-ai-built-products/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65
📚 Related NN/g Articles & Courses UX-Context Design: Using UX Knowledge to Inform AI-Generated Design https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ux-context-design/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Prompt to Design Interfaces: Why Vague Prompts Fail and How to Fix Them https://www.nngroup.com/articles/vague-prototyping/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 GenUI vs. Vibe Coding: Who's Designing? https://www.nngroup.com/articles/genui-vs-vibe/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Good from Afar, But Far from Good: AI Prototyping in Real Design Contexts https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-prototyping/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Context Architecture https://www.nngroup.com/articles/context-architecture/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65 Context Libraries: How AI Power Users Manage Context Engineering https://www.nngroup.com/articles/context-libraries/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ep65
TYXU5WMUAXAS8GTC