Graphic design has come an extended method since I began within the arts practically a decade and a half in the past.
Enhancements in instruments like Photoshop or my private favourite, Procreate, from then to now have helped take away artistic roadblocks and pace up the design course of. Then, user-friendly design instruments like Canva have made design extra accessible to non-specialists.
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Now, it’s 2024, and we discover ourselves within the throes of the “AI revolution.” We’re met with a ton of AI instruments for graphic design that promise to streamline our artistic workflows and extra.
However is the juice actually well worth the squeeze with these instruments? Immediately, we discover out.
Desk of Contents
Why use AI for graphic design?
From eradicating artistic blocks to saving time, listed here are three causes to think about including AI to your graphic design course of.
Take away Artistic Blocks
One of many foremost advantages I’ve discovered by utilizing AI is that it helps me take away artistic blocks.
So, after I’m writing and hit a wall, moderately than watching a clean display, I’d ask ChatGPT to generate an example use case for one thing. Even when the textual content it generates is clunky and unusable, it at the least provides me a place to begin.
On the subject of design, particularly, the identical goes for one thing like coloration pairing. With out AI help or pre-created palettes, I battle to decide on multiple coloration for a design. (As you’ll see later, a selected AI instrument for graphic design may also help take away that artistic block.)
Artistic Experimentation
As an Illustration graduate who specialised in printmaking, I can let you know first-hand that artistic experimentation in actual life will get messy.
Not solely is the method typically messy, however it will probably take up a variety of area. Earlier than you recognize it, a number of bodily variations of your experimentations are mounting up, and the following difficulty is the place to retailer them.
Apart from that, non-digital artistic experimentation is commonly riskier. With out the trustworthy “Ctrl Z” or equal at your disposal, you’re all the time one transfer away from ruining a design. The crux? It’s sufficient to place you off even making an attempt, and that’s not good for enterprise.
However I’m not just a few random ex-art grad on a cleaning soap field lecturing you about artistic expression with out simply trigger. I’m additionally a enterprise proprietor shouting from the rooftops about one key reality: Experimentation is the driving force behind innovation.
So, the more you can encourage it in yourself and, if relevant, your organization, the better.
Save Yourself Time
There’s a reason 95% of professionals utilizing AI say it helps them spend much less time on guide duties. And an extra 83% say it helps them give attention to the artistic elements of their position.
By means of automation, AI may also help you simplify your artistic workflow, be it via bulk edits or producing designs in a couple of prompts. Additionally, by eradicating artistic blocks and offering a technique to experiment at pace, you will get from an idea to a ultimate design a lot faster.
That mentioned, there’s one thing magical about making a bodily piece which you can maintain in your palms. And with out all these years spent within the print room or experimenting with completely different mediums — from textiles to gloopy oil paints — I don’t assume I’d perceive methods to use AI to attain my desired end result.
How I Examined the Finest AI Graphic Design Instruments
I examined every instrument in opposition to the next standards:
- Worth. I wished to know should you might get began with the instrument at no cost. (As a aspect observe, it’s price exploring how a lot it should value you to truly obtain and use the tip product for industrial functions.)
- Ease of use. I wished to check how intuitive and user-friendly the design platform was.
- Design capabilities. I wished to know the way broad every instrument’s design capabilities have been. Extra particularly, I attempted to grasp whether or not the instruments’ AI components have been overhyped or genuinely useful.
- Licenses and copyright. I wished to know should you might use the tip merchandise commercially. Bonus factors if the businesses behind the instruments actively defend folks from potential authorized motion after utilizing designs created via the platform.
- Ethics. As a artistic, I used to be interested in how every firm educated the AI fashions. I personally would favor to not use a instrument that didn’t work with creatives pretty or didn’t overtly state the way it educated the fashions.
AI Instruments for Graphic Design
I road-tested six instruments for graphic design. Right here’s what I discovered.
1. Adobe Specific
Adobe Express is an all-in-one AI content material creation app that enables customers to make beautiful social posts, advertising pictures, flyers, and extra.
Its AI instruments are powered by Adobe Firefly, a generative machine-learning mannequin particularly for design.
Although Adobe Specific is out there for everybody, HubSpot’s latest integration permits HubSpot customers to make use of the AI content material creation app to make aesthetically pleasing advertising supplies with out leaving HubSpot.
A well-liked use case for Adobe Specific is to “create beautiful, life-like pictures.” Nevertheless, it’s also possible to use the instrument for AI photograph modifying (i.e., altering backgrounds and eradicating undesirable components out of your pictures).
I made a decision to strive Adobe Specific for producing pictures from scratch. For context, keep in mind what I mentioned earlier about having an Illustration diploma and spending so much of time in a printmaking studio. So, I’d positively say my bias is towards the extra painterly/illustrative aspect of graphic design.
My immediate: “A easy black define of a mountain drawn within the model of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings drawings coloured with random splotches of drawing ink in magenta, blue, purple, and gold.”
I used to be really fairly impressed with the output, particularly contemplating I solely prompted the instrument and didn’t configure any of the settings initially.
However how does Adobe Specific stack up while you get extra particular with the settings? I selected Artwork because the content material sort to search out out.
For my part, the setting change didn’t make that a lot distinction to the output. However that may very well be as a result of the unique immediate was biased in the direction of an “artwork” sort of output anyway.
As an extra experiment, I additionally adjusted the immediate to convey extra whitespace into the mountain portion of the design. Adobe Specific interpreted that as extra whitespace, on the whole, moderately than within the mountain part itself. Lengthy story brief, that didn’t work out as I envisioned, so I ditched that portion of the immediate.
I’ll say that with one thing like this (private work), it’s typically concerning the journey as a lot because the vacation spot. And though it took mere seconds to supply, it wasn’t as enjoyable to create this digitally as it might’ve been by utilizing conventional printing and even with biro and drawing ink.
What I like: Adobe Firefly, which powers Adobe Specific, first piqued my curiosity in 2023 when Sarah Rogers, a Contributing Artist at Cricut, posted concerning the tool on LinkedIn.
Finest for: Adobe Specific is finest for particular person graphic designers, design groups, college students, college students and lecturers. And anybody trying to enhance their design expertise utilizing a accountable AI instrument.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
I’d adopted Sarah’s considerate LinkedIn posts about AI for some time. And we each appeared to have an identical mindset relating to its use inside artistic endeavors. I don’t wish to converse for Sarah, however as for me, right here’s my mindset:
- Sure, you may be capable to pace up your artistic course of with AI — if you know the way to make use of it.
- No, you shouldn’t hearth your entire artistic staff and substitute them with AI.
- And sure, it’s best to hold a wholesome stage of skepticism relating to the applying of AI inside what you are promoting. (A wholesome stage of skepticism, particularly concerning the output of the instruments, authorized points like licensing, and the way the fashions are educated.)
So, what caught my eye probably the most about Sarah’s endorsement of Adobe Firefly was that Adobe is, seemingly at the least, appearing responsibly on this area.
They’re arguably the most accountable of us within the design instrument world relating to AI. That makes me really feel extra assured about any potential licensing points and that “no creatives have been harmed” in coaching the fashions.
2. Canva
Canva is a free on-line graphic design instrument. You should utilize it to create a variety of designs, reminiscent of social media posts, logos, and shows.
Canva has built-in AI into its platform in a number of other ways, together with Magic Design, a text-to-image generator, and Magic Studio, which incorporates AI-driven photograph modifying options and text-to-video era.
Lately, I principally use Canva to make (some may say, hilarious) memes for my LinkedIn.
Nevertheless, I used the instrument so much after I provided social media advertising companies, so I wished to make use of Magic Studio to create a social media picture.
I began with a time-saving social media template — an Instagram put up particularly.
I selected Cream Minimalist New Collection Instagram Post by Kinley Creative.
I wished to customise the picture, so I uploaded an image of a few of my very own paintings.
I additionally wished to add a font I’d not too long ago downloaded from Type Colony. (That is TC Kuareen should you’re .)
To add the font, I clicked on the “new assortment” templated textual content, chosen the font drop-down menu, and clicked “Add a font.”
As soon as I’d come this far, I spotted I’d not used any AI options. So my subsequent process was to attempt to discover some. However, strive as I’d, I might solely discover two noticeable AI options inside the picture editor.
One in all them was “Magic Write.” I might see that being useful for designers or enterprise homeowners who need assistance writing copy. That mentioned, should you don’t know methods to use AI effectively, it’s no substitute for working with a educated copywriter. After all, the identical goes for design.
The opposite AI function was “Translate.” As soon as once more, I might see this being useful. Nevertheless, like copy and design, AI translation isn’t any substitute for having an precise translator to safeguard in opposition to translation mishaps.
This may very well be my misunderstanding of the instrument, however I discovered it exhausting to see a selected AI use case for social media graphic creation.
However I feel the instrument may very well be actually useful for AI picture modifying. For instance, the “Magic Eraser” edit function removes undesirable design components, and “Magic Edit” provides to, replaces, or edits a picture in a couple of clicks.
What I like: Canva is actually user-friendly. I really feel like folks with various ranges of design information, and even these with little expertise utilizing design instruments might use it.
I additionally like that the platform has launched an “industry-leading assortment of strong belief, security, and privateness instruments” via Canva Shield.
It looks as if Canva can be safeguarding in opposition to mental property claims for Enterprise clients. Plus, they’re compensating Canva creatives for his or her work via an AI royalty program.
Finest for: Particular person graphic designers, design groups, and small to enterprise companies.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
3. Designs.ai
Designs.ai is an built-in Company-as-a-Service platform powered by AI expertise. It’s a one-stop store for the whole lot from brand design to social media and picture era.
You may even convert textual content to speech for voice-over content material.
I attempted making a social media picture to see how Designs.ai compares to Canva, primarily as a result of I wished to know if the AI elements of this instrument have been extra outstanding.
My first thought was that should you’ve used Canva earlier than, it received’t take you lengthy to familiarize yourself with the structure for this part of the instrument. However even should you haven’t, the Designs.ai platform is simple and intuitive. I can see most individuals having the ability to choose up this instrument and run with it to a point.
At first look, the social media part is similar to Canva by way of choosing templates to customise based mostly on the channel (Fb, Instagram, and many others.). So, it’s fairly commonplace stuff, actually. The “Wizard” possibility, nonetheless, caught my eye.
The default format is “Enterprise Card,” however you may select from completely different choices, reminiscent of “Quotes,” “Product Listings,” and “YouTube Thumbnail.” I picked “Instagram Put up” to check the outcomes to Canva.
Along with the completely different design format choices, it’s also possible to select from predetermined classes like “Occasions & Celebrations,” “Enterprise, Authorized & Finance,” and “Animal & Pet.” I chosen “Artwork, Design & Inspiration.”
As a aspect observe, I had to enroll/check in to add my very own title picture. However I did the whole lot till that time by way of the web site with out signing up for the platform.
After inputting the design variables, I hit Generate. The choices the instrument spat out weren’t standout designs, however they have been higher than I anticipated — a nice shock!
Subsequent, I chosen one of many urged designs to see what the picture editor was like. As with a lot of Designs.ai, the structure is much like Canva.
For the sake of continuity, I might’ve missed one thing, however not like Canva, so far as I’m conscious, you may’t add your individual fonts to Designs.ai.
Total, I discovered the platform straightforward to navigate and use. That mentioned, I don’t assume this might serve your wants should you wished to create complicated designs.
I additionally couldn’t discover any details about how Designs.ai educated its fashions, so I’m cautious of that side.
There’s information about licensing, although. Typically, “completed tasks made with our artistic AI instruments might be distributed to advertise and promote what you are promoting.” Nonetheless, there are particular Do’s and Don’ts segmented by every side of the instrument (Emblem, Social Media, Video, and many others.) that you simply may wish to take note of.
What I like: By way of AI, Designs.ai goes a step past Canva. I can even see the “Bulk Edit” operate coming in useful if you wish to automate mass edits.
Finest for: Small companies firstly of their journey who don’t have the funds for a designer. Particular person graphic designers or design groups specializing in holistic advertising.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
4. AutoDraw
AutoDraw is an AI instrument that mixes machine studying and drawings from artists. You should utilize the instrument to “draw stuff quick.” By way of graphic design use instances, you could possibly use AutoDraw to make studying supplies and customized graphics.
And for any design that requires a fast define, I can see Autodraw rushing up the method.
A warning: I don’t have my graphics pill arrange. So the whole lot you’re about to witness — hilarious although it could be — was finished with only a mouse. I’m guessing the instrument’s capabilities are far higher with a pill or a stylus at hand.
Nevertheless, with out giving an excessive amount of away, it proves which you can enter a horrible drawing into AutoDraw and get one thing higher again.
I made a decision to maintain issues easy with previous smiley face. First, I used the “Form” instrument to create a circle define, after which I used “AutoDraw” for the eyes and nostril. As you may see, the AutoDraw components inputted by me are … missing finesse, let’s assume.
However that’s not an issue. The “Do you imply” part on the highest toolbar provides varied choices to finesse your drawing. So even when your try to attract a smiley face with only a mouse didn’t end up so effectively, one click on on a smiley face up high, and also you’re golden.
As you may see the smiley face is now rather less insufferable to behold. Subsequent I used Choose to pick out after which delete the preliminary circle form I added. (It turned out to be pointless.) Et voila! A shiny joyful clipart model particular person laughing … or one thing.
Concerning coaching the fashions, Google used“the identical expertise to guess what you’re making an attempt to attract,” as Quick, Draw!, which relied upon “artists, designers, illustrators, and pals of Google” so as to add drawings to the doodling information set.
I doubt the artists have been compensated for his or her work. Nonetheless, at the least they shared designs willingly moderately than having them scraped by AI with out their consent.
What I like: I actually like that the instrument is straightforward to make use of, free, and, let’s be trustworthy, enjoyable! Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be ultimate for complicated design work. That mentioned, should you don’t have a variety of time and wish to visualise an thought shortly, AutoDraw may also help.
Finest for: Anybody who must convey concepts and ideas at pace.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
5. Khroma
Khroma is an AI graphic design instrument that helps you match your favourite colours right into a sequence of palettes. The instrument additionally blocks the colours you don’t like, in order that they’ll by no means discover their method into your palettes.
I like that this instrument is so specialised for a selected objective. And I can see this being an enormous time saver should you battle with coloration pairing like me.
For context, I can choose a couple of colours that I like, no drawback. However I’m not all the time assured they go collectively and might get misplaced in evaluation paralysis. Because of this, I have a tendency to purchase pre-made coloration palettes for my go-to illustrative instrument, Procreate.
After I clicked Generate, I used to be prompted to decide on 50 colours “to coach a coloration generator algorithm” customized to me. I dove proper in and picked the colours that stood out to me at a look.
As I picked the colours, the “likes to go” part counted what number of colours I nonetheless had to decide on. The colour bar additionally began filling up with those I’d chosen up to now.
After choosing my 50 colours, I hit Begin Coaching.
Then, the outcomes got here in. The structure for the colour pairings is gorgeous, and I see a variety of potential on this instrument.
One other attention-grabbing component of Khroma is which you can visualize your coloration pairings in numerous methods, together with “Sort” (the view above) and “Gradient” (the view under). You may also see how your coloration decisions look as posters, pictures, and inside broader coloration palettes.
Since Khroma helps you pair colours already in existence, I can’t see it being exploitative to creators or needing particular licenses for industrial use. However I can’t say that for sure, so do your due diligence.
What I like: While you click on the data icon in opposition to every coloration pairing, Khroma supplies you with the colour codes. That can be such a time saver if you wish to coloration match in one other design instrument.
Finest for: Particular person designers and design groups trying to save time on coloration choice and pairing.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
6. Looka
Looka is a platform particularly for brand and model design. It makes use of synthetic intelligence and machine studying to create designs based mostly in your enter.
I began my take a look at by coming into an instance firm title and clicking Get began. From then on, Looka took me via a sequence of steps to assist me create a brand.
Step one was to choose my {industry}. As you may see, there’s a vary of sectors to select from.
I used to be then prompted to pick out some logos I preferred, adopted by some colours.
The next steps have been so as to add an organization title (once more, for some motive?) accompanied by a slogan after which to decide on some image varieties.
An commentary: I preferred that Looka gave me notes about my firm title and slogan decisions as I inputted them. This may very well be useful recommendation for freshmen. Plus, it’s also possible to choose your individual symbols if you wish to be extra hands-on with the design.
After that, Looka generated a couple of completely different logos for me. Whereas they have been competent logos, they have been too “out of the field” for me and lacked the artistic aptitude wanted for model differentiation. That mentioned, I didn’t go too deep into customizing the brand.
This instrument shines extra within the presentation of the designs than within the designs themselves. For instance, I like that Looka supplies design mock-ups so you may see how your brand will look on a enterprise card, web site, social media, and extra.
I couldn’t discover any specifics about how Looka educated its AI fashions, however they at the least deal with the potential destructive affect on human designers here:
By way of licensing and copyright, Looka says:
“It’s possible you’ll not use any of Looka’s Finish Merchandise outdoors of the Website, whether or not for industrial or private use, with out paying all relevant and respective Charges upfront. This consists of each digital and bodily use of the Finish Merchandise.”
What I like: Total, the platform is intuitive and straightforward to make use of. I like that Looka doesn’t use templates; moderately, it generates every design based mostly in your particular enter. There’s additionally a variety of font, structure, and coloration choices.
Finest for: New companies with out the funds to work with a designer. Particular person designers and design groups working particularly in branding.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
Seeking to pair your designs with AI-powered textual content? Get started with HubSpot AI today.
7. Kittl
Kittl is a free, easy-to-use on-line design platform that permits you to create high-quality designs with out the steep studying curve of conventional graphic design software program.
As a result of it is web-based, Kittl is ideal for designers on the go or these looking for a easy design answer with out the effort of installations, updates, and cupboard space.
One in all Kittl’s most notable qualities is its emphasis on “fast and straightforward creation {of professional} designs,” which makes it particularly well liked by customers who have to shortly and simply create visually interesting social media pictures, typography, and logos.
However do not be fooled by its simplicity — Kittl supplies refined customization choices that mean you can regulate each structure component with precision.
Kittl provides a number of AI-based instruments reminiscent of an AI brand generator, AI vectorizer, AI product background generator, and extra. To have a greater sense of the platform, I made a decision to particularly examine their AI Picture Generator.
Whereas selecting what to create, I found tons of free templates for particular tasks reminiscent of T-shirt designs, enterprise playing cards, POD merchandise, and extra. I settled on designing a brand and aimed to create a contemporary but pure look utilizing a pre-made template, an AI picture, and Kittl’s in depth assortment of fonts.
After logging in to Kittl, I began a New Venture, navigated to templates, and chosen a pre-made brand design from a fairly hefty template library. This added a brand new artboard to my mission with a customizable design.
With my template chosen, I wanted to create my AI picture. The Picture Generator was very simple and even should you don’t have a lot expertise utilizing AI design instruments, it’s best to be capable to navigate the options with ease.
The idea for my brand design was, “a smooth, nature-inspired brand in muted earth tones, with elegant typography.” The immediate I entered into the picture generator was “a dreamy desert oasis.”
I used to be pleasantly stunned that I might select from a wide range of kinds reminiscent of “cartoon,” and even “synthwave.” I settled on the “watercolor” model.
Utilizing the AI Background Remover, I removed the ensuing picture’s white background with a click on – and viola! I used to be left with the picture under…which is fairly superior.
Image SourceI didn’t assume the intense picture matched the pure look I wished so I attempted one other AI instrument: the AI Vectorizer. This was surprisingly straightforward to make use of and I used to be in a position to decide on what number of colours would stay within the vector picture.
From right here I tweaked some issues, just like the artboard coloration, textual content coloration, and font. The quantity of distinctive fonts Kittl has made it tough to decide on! I even duplicated the artboard to experiment with different model colours.
After I completed the graphic I went to the mockup part and selected the sticker mockup how actual does that look? The textual content wraps across the contours of the picture!
Image SourceAll in all, making a customized brand on Kittl was tremendous simple. What stood out with Kittl was simply the benefit of navigation and use. It was extremely straightforward to regulate every side with precision in only a few clicks.
What I like: If we’re pondering of AI instruments, then I like how Kittl strikes a mixture between ease of use and superior capabilities. As a result of the design instruments are easy to make use of, I might discover and make changes with none problem.
Finest for: Newbie or expert-level graphic designers, design groups, and POD creators. Kitt’s significantly good for people wanting skilled high quality designs with out the steep studying curve of different design software program.
Pricing: Get began at no cost.
The Backside Line on AI Instruments for Graphic Design
Let’s be trustworthy: A instrument is barely pretty much as good because the particular person wielding it. So, should you don’t know a lot about graphic design ideas to start with, it’s unlikely you’ll create a brand-differentiating finish product.
Nevertheless, if you recognize your method round your colours, typography, alignment, visible hierarchy, steadiness, and the remaining, AI can pace up your artistic course of.
Personally, I liked testing out Adobe Firefly. The top output exceeded that sterile “out of the field” template, which feels widespread with different instruments. I additionally preferred that you could possibly create one thing painterly in model.
Plus, I like Adobe’s moral strategy to utilizing AI. They’re working with creatives to coach their fashions responsibly and defending product customers in opposition to potential licensing and authorized points.
