Unswayed by artificial intelligence’s promises, some principals see the technology as fundamentally incompatible with their work.

For every handful of designers who are adopting artificial intelligence, there’s one who is opting out. Despite the technology’s overwhelming momentum, the AI-averse cohort is actively insulating their business from it. For reasons ranging from quality control issues to ethics, these designers believe AI’s costs outweigh its benefits, so they’re taking the road less traveled—one they view as higher ground, even if the route is a little slower at times.

“It would definitely be a time-saver to use AI,” says Dallas-based designer Lea Badro. “But I have also been seeing the products of AI, and they’re not always successful. A friend sent me an AI-designed ‘budget-friendly’ office rendering that included expensive features like wallpaper and wood paneling; disproportionate details like a small painting on a large wall; a sconce not centered on a desk; and a rug halfway under a rolling desk chair—all things that a real designer would immediately spot as issues. Clients hire me to design for them, not for a low-budget, incorrectly scaled [unoriginal] design plan.”