🏳️‍🌈Taylor McCaslin

Stop using aria-label as your accessibility quick fix. I see developers reach for aria-label constantly, thinking it solves their accessibility problems. But it often creates new ones. Here's what's actually happening: aria-label can mask existing content If you add aria-label to a button that already has visible text, screen readers will only hear the aria-label. Sighted users see one thing, screen reader users hear another. That's not accessible – that's confusing. It doesn't translate Your site visitor switches to Spanish, and all visible text translates automatically. But aria-label stays in English. So your "Search" button shows "Buscar" but announces "Search" to screen readers. It's often unnecessary Most HTML elements already have proper labeling methods. If your input has a label element, you don't need aria-label too. Better alternatives: • Use visible, descriptive text (it translates and everyone can see it) • Use proper elements for form controls • Try aria-labelledby to point to existing visible text • Use aria-describedby for additional context If you find yourself adding aria-label to compensate for missing visual labels, that's usually a design problem, not an accessibility solution. Instructions and labels should be visible to everyone – not hidden from sighted users. #Accessibility #WebDevelopment

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I just hit publish on my latest article in Fast Company: AI isn’t just speeding up design, it’s fundamentally changing the skills designers need to focus on and approaching a form of "generative synesthesia". Design used to be endless clicks; now it’s instant ideas and collaborative iteration. Can’t decide on a color palette? AI can suggest what works for your audience based on real data. You can spend your time pondering deeper questions “Is this unique from what I’m seeing in the market?” and “Is this advancing our larger brand goals?” This isn't about replacing human creativity. It's about giving everyone more creative resources. Film directors don't operate cameras, they focus on vision while specialized teams handle execution. AI is the creative team everyone gets. Check out the full piece here and would love to know if you agree, disagree, or have any hot takes of your own: https://lnkd.in/gqH4VYXS

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She's baaaack. I've just published a new piece on something I think gets overlooked way too often: the hidden work behind design system adoption. https://lnkd.in/gZCyagDx We talk about adoption like it’s a single moment, a metric to track or a launch to celebrate. But real adoption is slow, messy, and built on a foundation of unglamorous, ongoing effort. This piece is about that quiet work. The stuff that actually makes systems stick. ------ And, to address why I've been a bit MIA here lately, it's not because I haven’t had things to say, but because I’ve needed space to figure out a few things. If you’re curious, I wrote a personal piece about it a little while back: https://lnkd.in/gGa8nbyF That said, I’ve still been writing quietly in the background. You might’ve missed these too: → How I became a systems designer https://lnkd.in/gYfUSGCA → Assessing business maturity before diving into system work https://lnkd.in/gDtCu7y9 If you want to get updates when I publish something new, feel free to follow me over on Medium (https://lnkd.in/gXqr_cUF). I've got a few scheduled goodies in the pipeline

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🎬 Just dropped my latest experiment in AI animation: FungAI, a 13-min episode created for the "Exit Valley" show, powered by Showrunner by Fable. It’s weird. It’s bold. It might make you question your startup dreams - More about the project👇 Synopsis "When tech mogul Sam Maltman is diagnosed with terminal cancer, he sets out to achieve AI singularity and transcend human limitations to leave his mark. His journey leads him to cross paths with a crazy biologist when a visionary experience will lead both to a groundbreaking discovery that will disrupt Silicon Valley forever." What else can go wrong? 🤔 First, we did this for fun, this work has no commercial purpose. This is a creative experiment. Showrunner played a key role on bringing our crazy ideas to life! This project started one year ago when I joined the closed alpha of Showrunner. I teamed up with my friend Davi Moori to explore: ➡️ How far can we push AI storytelling? ➡️ Can AI help us make watchable, engaging narratives? ➡️ What if we mash up all the AI tools? Spoiler: we did. 💬 All dialogs powered by Showrunner made via Discord 🎨 Visuals and videos made with Midjourney, Runway, Luma AI, MiniMax, Magnific AI and more 🎤 Voices and soundtrack: ElevenLabs, Suno, Udio, Showrunner We experimented with Dan Harmon’s story circle, but didn’t aim for perfection. We embraced imperfection, played with styles, and had fun. 👉 You can watch the full episode in HD at zero1cine curated AI movie database. This was a non-commercial experiment, but one that gave us a taste of what’s possible when indie creators and AI collide. Thanks to Edward Saatchi from Fable Simulation for letting me play in the Showrunner sandbox closed alpha. Curious about the creative process? I wrote a detailed breakdown on X. Looking forward to watch more episodes of Exit Valley made by other creators using Showrunner! 📺 Their public platform with episodes from more creators will go live soon - stay tuned! 🔗 Link to watch in better quality in the comments) "Edward Saatchi isn’t totally sure people will flock to Showrunner, the new AI-generated TV show service his company is launching publicly this week. But he has a vote of confidence from Amazon, whose Alexa Fund venture-capital investment arm has invested in Fable, Saatchi’s San Francisco-based start-up." We hope you will enjoy, or laugh at least once. #AIanimation #AIfilm #Showrunner #Fable #Amazon #AI #comedy

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On July 31, Figma hit the NYSE, capping off a 13-year climb to the public markets. In interviews, the CEO spoke about wanting their community to share in Figma’s ownership, framing the public markets as the best way to make that happen. It’s a shame they didn’t know: you don’t have to wait over a decade, or go public, to make that happen. Founders today are opening the door to ownership from day one: raising directly from customers and fans, embedding the investment flow into their own site, and keeping full control while staying private. Shareholders spend ~40% more and show 80% higher purchase loyalty than typical customers. Turning your community into a long-term growth engine. The outcome? A community of believers who are financially and emotionally invested in your success. Retail capital isn’t just a funding source. It’s a strategic advantage you can start using now.

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I think this post is largely aligned with my view on the impact AI will have on the future of design. The big challenge for designers is that taste is a hard thing to articulate/demonstrate, and it's something most people (including your PM and exec) think they have in spades. https://lnkd.in/eNX4cYae

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