Responding to criticism, Figma CTO Kris Rasmussen says Make Design is “powered by off-the-shelf models and a bespoke design system that we commissioned”

Figma says it didn't train the generative AI models it used and blames a ‘bespoke design system.’

The Verge 2024-07-03 Jay Peters

Context & Ripple Effects

Figma introduced generative features as part of a broader product update days earlier, then withdrew Make Design after examples resembling Apple’s Weather surfaced in an early Make Design output controversy. Rasmussen’s account shifts the focus from whether Figma trained a model to how its commissioned design layer shaped the output.

The episode matters because a design tool’s value lies in the interface and visual conventions it generates, not only in the underlying model. Figma is now distinguishing its role as the builder of that product layer from the suppliers of the foundation models.

First-order effects

Figma must account for the commissioned design system behind Make Design and address why that layer produced outputs close enough to a familiar app to prompt the tool’s disablement.
Users and design teams lose access to Make Design while Figma reassesses the feature, despite its recent launch of generative AI tools.

Second-order effects

The incident raises the bar for design-AI vendors using third-party models: model provenance alone does not resolve concerns about output similarity when product-specific templates or design systems guide generation.
Customers evaluating AI-assisted design workflows are likely to demand clearer controls over reference styles, templates, and generated UI before relying on such tools in production.

Third-order effects

If generative design becomes a standard feature, competitive differentiation will increasingly sit in the governed interface layer—design systems, constraints, and review controls—rather than in access to a general-purpose model alone.
The case points toward stronger likeness governance for generated interfaces, with providers needing to make responsibility legible across both model suppliers and the product teams that configure them.

The trend: Generative software is moving toward model–interface separation, where the most consequential governance questions arise in the product-specific layers wrapped around commodity models.

Discussion

@ashzade_ Ash Zade on threads
“We legally bought a stolen car.”
r/technology r on reddit
Figma pulls AI tool after criticism that it ripped off Apple's design / Figma says it didn't train the generative AI models it used and blames a ‘bespoke design system.’
@asallen Andy Allen on threads
This is a “weather app” using the new Make Designs feature in Figma AI and the results are nearly identical to Apple's Weather app (left). Tried three times, same results. Hmm... 🤔
@reichenstein@mastodon.social Oliver Reichenstein on mastodon
It's almost funny how Figma didn't see this coming after the evenly predictable Adobe fuckup. https://techcrunch.com/... next: Fender adding AI to their guitars so everyone can be like Prince without learning to play the guitar. With an optional sign out for those who don't want…
@asallen Andy Allen on x
Figma AI looks rather heavily trained on existing apps. This is a “weather app” using the new Make Designs feature and the results are basically Apple's Weather app (left). Tried three times, same results. [image]
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(1) As we shared at Config last week - as well as on our blog, our website, and many other touchpoints - the Make Design feature is not trained on Figma content, community files or app designs. In other words, the accusations around data training in this tweet are false.
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(4) I have asked our team to temporarily disable the Make Design feature until we are confident we can stand behind its output. The feature will be disabled when our US based team wakes up in a few hours, and we will re-enable it when we have completed a full QA pass on the
@asallen Andy Allen on x
Figma AI designs a “not boring weather app” [video]
@kris_rasmussen Kris Rasmussen on x
@asallen Thank you for surfacing this. As we shared when we launched Figma AI last week, there was no training as part of this feature or any of our generative features. We are looking into what extent the similarities are a function of the third party models we are using vs. the…
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(3) Within hours of seeing this tweet, we identified the issue, which was related to the underlying design systems that were created. Ultimately it is my fault for not insisting on a better QA process for this work and pushing our team hard to hit a deadline for Config.
@realskyhartman Sky Hartman on x
Another reason we've decided to turn off all AI features in @figma @RocketCompanies. A ton of great updates came out of Config, but Figma needs to allow for more granularity with its AI permissions. Get Started needs to be able to be turned off.
@adamwhitcroft Adam Whitcroft on x
Not trained on Figma content... yet. If they truly respected those using their design tool, training - when it launches - should be opt in.
@martymadrid @martymadrid on x
What I find hilarious about the design community is that they all want to inspire each other, but only when it's done manually. What we forget is that every time we enter an awards contest, post on Dribbble, or just publish our work publicly ... it's instantly training data for
@andrewhartar Andrew Hart on x
CEO of Figma is apologetic about scraping data, but just like all the others (OpenAI, Google, Apple) uses evasive language to downplay the issue. “we use publicly available data” is the new “we scraped the internet”. “we use off-the-shelf LLMs” == not our fault!
@amyhoy Amy Hoy on x
using generative anything will always be a millstone around your neck. if you can generate it, any other jackass can too — it's the opposite of a competitive advantage (and they'll both probably infringe).
@alexguichet Alex Guichet on x
Andy is the exact right person to make this thread, as the creator of extremely original and imaginative apps in quite tired product categories Figma is responding by saying there was no *training*, but it's clear the system is built to produce this exact style of output. You
@trace_cohen Trace Cohen on x
1) masterclass in CEO led comms 2) admitted pushed product team to conf deadline to ship good but not perfect product 3) off shelf LLMs will produce good stuff 4) users expect Ai to create something new and magical - we still have a lot of work to do before that.
@designerarvid Arvid on x
@asallen the AI, being a machine of inferences — of averages, means, and medians — will likely create average results. https://www.arvidastrom.com/ ...
@sdw Sebastiaan de With on x
It just blows my mind how much companies keep self-owning because they think they risk anything being ‘too slow’ in adopting AI. All the fast AI implementations have been bad. Google answers. MS Recall. This Figma AI thing. Take your time to do it right the first time.
@emanuelmaiberg Emanuel Maiberg on x
AI tool rushed to launch✅ Immediately clearly copies someone's work✅ Mild panic, AI tool shut down✅ https://www.404media.co/...
@ravi_bhandia Ravi Bhandia on x
Interesting thread on another failed llm feature launch, this time it's figma. https://x.com/... Main takeaway for me: QA and good evals are so important. It's sometimes a difficult decision to ship early even when you don't have a ton of confidence in the feature vs.
@krzyzanowskim Marcin Krzyzanowski on x
How's building designers community around Figma AI going on? now when they realized they are the product and given for free.
@sdw Sebastiaan de With on x
Design deserves better than Figma AI. Figma was the latest company to mishandle AI and design — foreshadowing the loss of a vast array of design jobs. We should demand better from our tools and industry. https://sdw.space/... [image]
@carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on x
Figma has disabled its recently launched “Make Design” feature which uses AI to design an app after it was discovered that asking it to make a weather app creates one that looks remarkably like the Apple Weather app. [image]
@carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on x
Another instance of AI being trained on copyrighted content then competing with creators. https://www.404media.co/...
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(2) How does Make Design work? As we have explained publicly, the feature uses off-the-shelf LLMs, combined with design systems we commissioned to be used by these models. The problem with this approach — which I outlined in my keynote last week — is that variability is too low.
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(5) As I discussed at Config, we believe that craft is your competitive advantage and it's more important than ever to create unique designs. We live in a world where any off the shelf LLM can help you go from prompt to software in one shot. Designers will need new tools to
@zoink Dylan Field on x
(6) I hate missing the mark, especially on something that I believe is so fundamentally important to the future of design. More soon.
r/FigmaDesign r on reddit
Figma disables AI app design tool

Chronicles