Figma pulls AI tool after criticism that it ripped off Apple’s design

Jul 03, 2024 03:15 AM - 4 months ago 61128

Figma’s caller instrumentality Make Designs lets users quickly mock up apps utilizing generative AI. Now, it’s been pulled aft nan instrumentality drafted designs that looked strikingly akin to Apple’s iOS upwind app. Figma CEO Dylan Field posted a thread connected X early Tuesday greeting detailing the removal, putting nan blasted connected himself for pushing nan squad to meet a deadline, and defending nan company’s attack to processing its AI tools.

In posts on X, Andy Allen, CEO of Not Boring Software, showed conscionable really intimately Figma’s Make Designs instrumentality made near-replicas of Apple’s upwind app. “Just a heads up to immoderate designers utilizing nan caller Make Designs characteristic that you whitethorn want to thoroughly cheque existing apps aliases modify nan results heavy truthful that you don’t unknowingly onshore yourself successful ineligible trouble,” Allen wrote.

In a Tuesday question and reply pinch Figma CTO Kris Rasmussen, I asked him constituent blank if Make Designs was trained connected Apple’s app designs. His response? He couldn’t opportunity for sure. Figma was not responsible for training nan AI models it utilized astatine all.

“We did nary training arsenic portion of nan generative AI features,” Rasmussen said. The features are “powered by off-the-shelf models and a bespoke creation strategy that we commissioned, which appears to beryllium nan underlying issue.”

That mostly matches thing he said connected Monday connected X successful consequence to a personification who suggested Make Designs was trained connected existing apps. “As we shared erstwhile we launched Figma AI past week, location was nary training arsenic portion of this characteristic aliases immoderate of our generative features,” he wrote. “We are looking into what grade nan similarities are a usability of nan 3rd statement models we are utilizing vs. nan creation systems we commissioned to beryllium utilized by nan models and we will reside arsenic needed.”

Field, successful his ain thread, said that nan Make Designs characteristic “is not trained connected Figma content, organization files aliases app designs” and noted that “the accusations astir information training successful this tweet are false.” He said a problem pinch nan company’s attack is that “variability is excessively low.”

The cardinal AI models that powerfulness Make Designs are OpenAI’s GPT-4o and Amazon’s Titan Image Generator G1, according to Rasmussen. If it’s existent that Figma didn’t train its AI devices but they’re spitting retired Apple app lookalikes anyway, that could propose that OpenAI aliases Amazon’s models were trained connected Apple’s designs. OpenAI and Amazon didn’t instantly reply to a petition for comment.

Rasmussen based on that Figma didn’t want to do immoderate training to amended its features until it was unfastened pinch its users astir its AI training policies, which it besides introduced past week. As portion of those policies, users person until August 15th to determine if they want to opt successful aliases retired of allowing their contented to beryllium utilized for Figma’s training. (Starter and Professional plans are opted successful by default, while Organization and Enterprise plans are opted retired by default.)

I asked if Figma is readying connected training its ain models — which, fixed nan company’s new AI training policies, seems for illustration thing that’s going to happen. “We decidedly spot opportunities to really cleanable your creation workflows by school these models really to creation successful nan discourse of Figma,” Rasmussen said. However, “we’re going to beryllium taking steps to guarantee that our ain models aliases immoderate fine-tuning we do pinch unfastened root models only study wide creation patterns and circumstantial Figma creation concepts truthful that they tin beryllium amended devices for master designers.”

I besides asked Rasmussen really Figma plans to hole its processes to drawback imaginable issues successful nan future. “We’re doing a walk complete nan bespoke creation strategy to guarantee that it has capable variety and meets our value standards,” he said. “That’s nan guidelines origin of nan issue. But we’re going to return further precautions earlier we re-enable [Make Designs] to make judge that nan full characteristic meets our value standards and is accordant pinch our values.”

Rasmussen besides pointed to nan truth that Make Designs is successful beta. “Betas, by definition, are not perfect. But it’s safe to say, arsenic Dylan shared successful his tweet, that we simply didn’t drawback this peculiar issue. And we should have.”

Rasmussen said Figma expects to re-enable Make Designs “soon.” Other Figma AI features will proceed to beryllium disposable successful beta. (To entree immoderate of Figma’s AI features, you person to motion up for a waitlist.)

Figma is nan latest institution to travel nether scrutiny for its attack to bringing AI into its imaginative tools. Adobe had to make clear that it wouldn’t usage your activity to train its AI aft backlash toward position of work changes. And Meta has had to change its AI labels aft photographers complained astir its aged explanation being incorrectly applied to existent photos.

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