The Taste Gap: Why AI Can't Replace Your Eye

We've talked about how AI can write code. But building a great product isn't just about code that compiles. It's about how it looks, how it feels, and what it says.

AI is the ultimate "average" machine. It's trained on the internet, which means it defaults to the most common, safe, and boring choices. That's where you come in.

The Taste Gap

Ira Glass once famously spoke about the "Gap" between your taste (which is killer) and your ability (which might still be catching up).

AI closes the Ability Gap instantly. You can now build anything. But it widens the Taste Gap. Because now, you can generate so much mediocre stuff so quickly, you might drown in it.

Your job is no longer just "builder." Your job is "curator." You are the editor-in-chief of the AI's output.

Design: Escaping the "Corporate Memphis"

Ask an AI to "design a modern website," and it will give you the same blue gradients, rounded corners, and generic illustrations that you've seen a thousand times. It's safe. It's clean. It's boring.

Taste is knowing when to break the rules. It's choosing a font that has personality. It's using whitespace not just to separate things, but to create drama. AI doesn't understand drama; it understands patterns.

Writing: Don't Sound Like a Bot

"In today's fast-paced digital landscape..."

If you see that sentence, you know a human didn't write it. AI writing is grammatically perfect and emotionally dead. It loves buzzwords. It hates risk.

AI doesn't hurt. It doesn't feel. So when you use it to write copy, you have to inject the soul back into it. Add slang. Add rhythm. Break grammar rules for effect. Make it sound like you.

The Last 10%

AI gets you 90% of the way there. It builds the frame, paints the walls, and installs the plumbing. But that last 10%? The art on the walls, the lighting, the vibe? That's all you.

And that last 10% is what separates a "project" from a "product." It's what makes people love what you build.