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Building & Product

Why prototype with AI before hiring a designer?

Because a working prototype beats a pitch deck and a job posting: in an afternoon you can put a clickable version of your idea in front of real users, sharpen your spec, and find out what is worth building before spending a rupee on salaries. A quarter of recent YC batches ship codebases that are mostly AI-generated, and product leaders now treat prompt-built prototypes as the new PRD. A designer is still worth hiring, but later, when you have signal and need craft and consistency, not to produce your first draft.

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Pitch Deck

More in Design & Prototyping

How do founders turn ideas into clickable prototypes in hours (v0, Figma AI, Lovable)? 19 → How do I use AI to improve UX copy, onboarding flows, and landing pages? 19 → Which AI prototyping tool should I pick: v0, Lovable, Bolt, Replit, or Figma Make? 17 → How do I write prompts that get good UI out of AI design tools? 18 → How do I stop my AI-generated UI from looking generic? 18 → Do I still need a designer if AI can design, and when should I hire one? 19 → How do I take an AI-built prototype to a production-ready product? 18 → How do I test my AI prototype with real users, and can AI simulate user feedback? 19 → How do I design and ship a mobile app with AI? 18 → How do I create pitch decks, product images, and marketing visuals with AI? 18 → How do I create a logo and brand identity with AI on a founder budget? 19 →

Also in Starting Up

The same ground, over in Build the product, our Starting Up track.

What actually counts as an MVP, and what's the smallest one I can get away with? 20 → Which no-code tool should I use to build my first product? 20 →
eChai Partner Brands The partnership →