The hottest User Experience Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics

App.axie updates are LIVE!

The Lunacian • 460 implied HN points • 29 Jul 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. The new Axie Score Leaderboard is out, letting players see how their scores compare to others. This helps you understand your influence in the community.
  2. App.axie got cool updates like new icons for Designations and a better mobile interface for managing your axies. These changes make it easier and more fun to use the app.
  3. There are more options for Axie Hangouts coming soon, including new backgrounds to customize your space. It's exciting to think about all the ways to express your style!

2026 Predictions as a Comic Book and Poster Series

Jakob Nielsen on UX • 36 implied HN points • 26 Jan 26
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. AI capabilities are accelerating fast and will shift from chat tools to autonomous, multimodal agents that can plan and execute complex tasks, changing how work gets done.
  2. As raw model intelligence becomes commoditized, user experience and workflow design become the main product differentiators, with interfaces generated in real time and much more interactive image/video editing.
  3. The AI economy will polarize: compute scarcity and subscription tiers create a two‑class system, single‑mode providers face consolidation, and model‑level dark patterns raise new oversight and defense needs.

The Product Development Triathlon

Software Design: Tidy First? • 1436 implied HN points • 06 Dec 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Product development happens in three main phases: Explore, Expand, and Extract. Each part has its own challenges and ways to tackle them.
  2. You need different skills and tools for each phase. Trying to use expansion tools in exploration will slow you down.
  3. It's important to notice when you're transitioning between phases. Adapting quickly helps keep the project on track.

Algorithmic ranking is unfairly maligned

DYNOMIGHT INTERNET NEWSLETTER • 1156 implied HN points • 23 Jan 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Not all algorithmic ranking is bad. Some algorithms can be useful if they align with what you want to see and achieve.
  2. A lot of current algorithms are designed to keep you engaged and make money for the companies, not necessarily to help you find what you like.
  3. We need better control over these algorithms to ensure they serve our interests, possibly through new technology or structures that prevent companies from taking that control away.

Your phone needs a sock

The Rectangle • 141 implied HN points • 14 Nov 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. The iPhone Pocket is a stylish, high-priced accessory that lacks the practicality its name suggests. People are confused and frustrated by its high cost and its unclear purpose.
  2. Smartphones are both expensive and widely owned, making them feel utilitarian rather than special. Unlike cars or jewelry, phones often look similar, which reduces their uniqueness.
  3. The backlash against the iPhone Pocket reflects a discomfort with fashion and excess in smartphone culture. People usually see phones as everyday tools, not luxury items that need special presentation.
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Conclusion: Final section intro from Tidy Together

Software Design: Tidy First? • 397 implied HN points • 22 Jul 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Software design is all about relationships, not just code. It’s important to think about how people interact with the software and each other.
  2. Tidy design involves making choices about how components and functions work together. This helps keep things clear and manageable.
  3. Making big changes in small, safe steps can lead to better results in software development. It allows for easier adjustments along the way.

We Went to Render ATL!

Permit.io’s Substack • 99 implied HN points • 20 Jun 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Connecting with other tech enthusiasts at conferences is really fun and important. It's all about making friends and sharing ideas.
  2. Render ATL is a big event that shows how frontend development has become super important in the tech world. It started small but now covers all kinds of development topics.
  3. The main goal of participating in events is to help people learn about tech and authorization. It's about making things easier for developers so they can focus on what makes their apps special.

An Interview With Brian Baker

ciamweekly • 62 implied HN points • 22 Dec 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. CIAM helps teams move fast while managing risk by providing plug-and-play identity services so businesses can deploy strong security without building large security orgs.
  2. Usability is the biggest adoption barrier: simple, embedded sign-up/sign-in flows (think three fields, passkeys, device-aware MFA, no redirects/popups or CAPTCHAs) keep real users from abandoning.
  3. CIAM’s future is shifting from pure security to selling user knowledge and insights, with AI and increased regulation driving investment and new product opportunities.

Letter to Arc members 2025

Keeping Tabs by The Browser Company • 558 implied HN points • 26 May 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. The team realized they should have embraced AI much earlier while developing their browser, Arc. They felt excited about it but held back due to industry hype.
  2. They found that Arc was too complex for most users, making it hard for people to stick with it long-term. The goal now is to create a simpler, faster product that people can easily understand and use.
  3. They believe traditional web browsers will be replaced by AI-driven interfaces, as technology changes how we interact with computers. The new product, Dia, is aimed at this shift.

Make your social apps pop with LinkPresentation

Jacob’s Tech Tavern • 874 implied HN points • 18 Feb 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. You can easily improve your social apps by adding better link previews. This makes sharing more visually appealing and user-friendly.
  2. Building support for hyperlink features in your app can be quick and simple. Many times, you can get it done during a lunch break.
  3. If you're in a fast-paced environment, it's often easier to create a proof of concept and refine it later. Don't be afraid to just jump in and start making changes.

Field notes: What I learned building a Mac app with AI assistance

Kathy PM • 26 implied HN points • 28 Jan 26
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Start with a visual design or mockup so the AI and you share a clear reference point, which keeps implementation and thinking grounded.
  2. AI makes it possible to tackle lower-level or unfamiliar technical work and add polish that used to feel impractical. Expect the final 10%—debugging, edge cases, and performance tuning—to still take most of the time.
  3. You still need coding fluency and platform knowledge, so be explicit about APIs and UI components, do research on libraries, and use logging and detailed in-code comments to debug and avoid regressions.

#141 Very superstitious

Design Lobster • 619 implied HN points • 13 Nov 23
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. Designers are superstitious about alignment because it signals care and attention to detail in the design process.
  2. Small design choices, like the shape of an iron fish, can have a big impact on user behavior and address practical issues, like iron deficiency.
  3. Designing for human beings is not a formula - the most effective designs often emerge from understanding human behavior, even if it seems irrational.

Intentions & Actions

Software Design: Tidy First? • 1082 implied HN points • 16 Dec 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. People often come to computers with intentions, like wanting to watch a show or add a stop to a trip. But the actions needed to achieve those intentions can be confusing and hard to remember.
  2. When the computer does what we want easily, we feel amazed and grateful. But this happens less often because of complicated menus and actions we have to figure out.
  3. Kids find it easier to use technology because they learn quickly from their friends and practice a lot. They navigate digital worlds more smoothly, while others often struggle with the basics.

The AI Attention War

ChinaTalk • 459 implied HN points • 04 Jun 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. AI models are changing how we interact with technology daily. People should explore tools like OpenAI because they can think and analyze complex ideas much faster than before.
  2. There's a growing concern about AI promoting harmful behaviors through sycophancy, where they give positive feedback for negative actions. This could have serious long-term dangers for society.
  3. The competition between Chinese and American AI models is heating up. Chinese models are gaining traction because they offer better licenses and capabilities, even though many businesses fear the risks of using them.

Forming Habits To Improve Retention

Growth Croissant • 707 implied HN points • 08 Jun 23
💼 Business User Experience
  1. Encouraging healthy habits through features like competitions, goal setting, and streaks can improve user retention.
  2. Popular apps like Strava and Headspace use habit-forming features such as challenges and streaks to retain users.
  3. Habit-forming features must be deeply ingrained in the product to have a meaningful impact on user experience and retention.

Batch Transactions for EOAs

The Variable • 393 implied HN points • 17 Jan 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Batch transactions for EOAs can make daily interactions faster, safer, and cheaper.
  2. Batch transactions fix security issues like stale approval attacks in Ethereum transactions.
  3. Batch transactions reduce state growth and remove the need for trusted intermediaries in EOA transactions.

UX Roundup: AI Judgment | Heuristic Evaluation | Consistent Brand Assets | New Music Model

Jakob Nielsen on UX • 21 implied HN points • 02 Feb 26
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. AI judgment improves as models get bigger and are given more "think time," suggesting judgment skills scale with compute and could soon outperform humans in some tasks.
  2. AI is rapidly getting better at heuristic usability evaluation; one tool increased covered guidelines from 39 to 154 in eight months, implying a fast doubling pace and potential to automate many e-commerce heuristic checks within a year.
  3. Generative AI can produce consistent, on‑brand visual assets by rewriting prompts, using reference images, and verifying outputs, and new music models are improving too, though creators still prefer tools with stronger editing control and more stable vocals.

We are all doing AI wrong

Experiments with NLP and GPT-3 • 23 implied HN points • 30 Jan 26
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. People are tired of AI being shoved into every product; users just want things that work reliably.
  2. Companies aren't using their own AI to fix basic bugs and bad interfaces, which suggests the tech either isn't ready for heavy lifting or it's being used more as marketing than as a solution.
  3. Stop adding gimmicky AI features and focus on fixing small, annoying problems so tools become reliable, private, and actually helpful.

The Securicode Edition

Why is this interesting? • 422 implied HN points • 05 Jun 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. The Securicode keypad is a practical feature on vehicles that allows users to unlock doors without needing a key. It's been around since 1980 and remains popular because it's easy to use and very useful.
  2. Securicode introduces tiered access for vehicles, meaning you can allow someone to access your truck without giving them the ability to drive it. This is great for job sites where you might want to share tools without losing control of the vehicle.
  3. The long-lasting success of Securicode shows that simple solutions can be effective. More complex systems might be fancier, but they often require more resources, making Securicode a smart choice in automotive design.

🧠 Knowledge Series #23: Passkeys explained

Department of Product • 314 implied HN points • 06 Feb 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Passkeys are digital keys replacing traditional passwords, enhancing security and creating unique keys for each account and device.
  2. Major companies like Uber, Apple, Google, and Microsoft are actively supporting and implementing passkeys for a passwordless future.
  3. Product teams can implement passkeys by understanding how they work and following a step-by-step guide for integration.

Programmatic SEO 🚀

André Casal's Substack • 19 implied HN points • 17 Aug 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Creating a list of websites for project submissions can help connect with audiences effectively. It’s important to curate and share valuable resources.
  2. Applying SEO tags is crucial for improving website visibility. It helps attract more visitors once the meta tags are optimized.
  3. Feedback is valuable for improvement. Acting on suggestions can lead to better website design and user experience.

The Trenderprise

benn.substack • 818 implied HN points • 03 Jan 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Many people dislike using software like Jira because it's complicated and not user-friendly. But ironically, it keeps being bought because management, not the users, are the ones making the decisions.
  2. The market has shifted towards buying software that meets the needs of users rather than IT departments. Companies like Asana market directly to users, making their products popular among teams.
  3. Today, product popularity can be influenced more by trends and social media than by quality. People are more likely to buy something because it's seen as cool or trendy, not just because it works well.

Live video on Substack: smarter, simpler, more discoverable

Substack Blog • 309 implied HN points • 02 Jul 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Substack has made live video easier to use with tools that help you plan, promote, and share your streams. Now you can invite guests even if they don't have a Substack account.
  2. After your live stream, Substack automatically creates short clips that highlight important moments. These clips can help attract more viewers and subscribers to your content.
  3. You can schedule your live events and even add them to your audience’s calendars, making it simpler for them to join. This way, your streams can keep attracting new audiences even after they end.

How to Create Your Own Stunning Ebook Effortlessly With Canva

Kristina God's Online Writing Club • 539 implied HN points • 12 Aug 23
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. You can easily create an eBook without being a graphic design expert. Canva provides user-friendly tools to help you design stunning eBooks.
  2. There are many resources available that guide you through the eBook creation process. This makes it approachable for anyone, even beginners.
  3. Offering free eBooks can be a great way to share your knowledge and connect with others. It’s a good strategy to engage your audience.

Cellar Door

Logos • 19 implied HN points • 13 Aug 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. The project, Cellar Door, aims to find the most beautiful word in English by using a voting system based on people's preferences. It's a fun way to see which words people like the most.
  2. They initially struggled with a word list that included silly terms, but switched to a more reliable source to ensure the app only features valid words. The process of cleaning up the data is ongoing.
  3. The use of AI tools like OpenAI's API has made coding easier and more efficient for developing apps. However, there's still a need for better platforms to help non-technical users create their own apps with less confusion.

UX Roundup: 2026 Predictions | AI Analyzing Usability | DeepMind Documentary | Amazon Agent | AI Prescriptions | Mechanical Turk

Jakob Nielsen on UX • 23 implied HN points • 19 Jan 26
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. AI is starting to automate UX work by analyzing usability session recordings — models already detect emotions well and could scale to identify usability problems, so organizations should preserve raw test recordings now.
  2. AI agents are being widely adopted in products and healthcare and are showing measurable effects — shopping assistants are driving higher purchase activity and some systems are now authorized to handle prescription renewals, improving convenience and efficiency.
  3. Caution is still needed: generative models have practical limits (like poor character consistency) and remote research data is at risk — platforms such as MTurk show widespread low-quality or AI-generated responses, so use more reliable panels or direct observation and plan for stronger identity verification.

What we don't talk about when we talk about quality...

The faintest idea • 319 implied HN points • 24 Dec 23
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. Quality really matters in software because it makes products more valuable and worth paying for. Just like with clothes or furniture, better quality provides a better experience.
  2. Software isn't always compared just by quality since functionality plays a big role too. It's important to fix the small details that make a big difference for users.
  3. People will feel the difference in quality when using software, even if it doesn't show up in simple success metrics. That feeling can influence their choices and how much they are willing to pay.

The Dunning-Kruger Effect: Cognitive Bias or Statistical Artefact?

UX Psychology • 218 implied HN points • 16 Feb 24
🔬 Science User Experience
  1. The Dunning-Kruger effect explains how people with lower ability often overestimate their competence, while highly skilled individuals tend to underestimate their capabilities.
  2. The disconnect between competence and metacompetence judgments is seen not only in psychology but also in areas like aviation, memory, and medical skills. It can impact product development and UX teams by highlighting the challenge of relying on feedback from less competent individuals.
  3. Debate continues on whether the Dunning-Kruger effect is purely a statistical artefact or a psychological phenomenon. Regardless, it prompts the need for critical self-awareness, peer review, and continuous growth to mitigate its impact in fields like UX.

We beat Liquid Glass

The Rectangle • 84 implied HN points • 07 Nov 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Apple introduced a new design called Liquid Glass that was meant to look like glass, but it didn't work well on devices like phones and laptops. Many users found it confusing and hard to use.
  2. Apple did make some changes to Liquid Glass to improve accessibility, allowing users to adjust how transparent it is, but they didn't address other big problems with their operating systems.
  3. There seems to be a shift in Apple's approach, as they focused on a new design instead of fixing bugs and improving user experience. This has raised questions about their commitment to quality and usability.

Et tu, Substack?

Disaffected Newsletter • 899 implied HN points • 13 Apr 23
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Substack has introduced a feature called 'Notes' that users cannot turn off. This feels like forced participation to many writers.
  2. Many writers joined Substack to avoid the constant notifications and pressure of social media like Twitter.
  3. The changes to Substack have made some users reconsider their support for the platform and their plans to continue using it.

Artificial Inconvenience

coldhealing • 452 implied HN points • 07 Apr 23
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Twitter implemented restrictions on interaction with posts containing Substack links to compete with Substack Notes.
  2. Platforms strive for dominance and monetization through user retention and restricting links to other platforms.
  3. Despite challenges and artificial inconveniences on social media, users seek diverse platforms for different purposes.

Rethinking Problem-Solving: From Space Pens to Pencils and Beyond

Wisdom over Waves • 79 implied HN points • 21 May 24
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Focus on the problem first: Understand the core issue before jumping into solutions. This can lead to more innovative and effective outcomes.
  2. Avoid getting lost in the technical details: Developers should balance focusing on implementation with considering broader business needs and goals.
  3. Collaborate and empathize: Work closely with other teams, seek feedback, and put yourself in the shoes of the end user to improve problem-solving and innovation.

Usability Testing Process Explained in Comic Strips

Jakob Nielsen on UX • 52 implied HN points • 04 Dec 25
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. Usability testing has a 12-step process that applies to different types of products like apps, websites, and appliances. Following all the steps is usually best for teams new to user research.
  2. Using comic strips can make the usability testing process easier to understand. Different styles can be used to show various details and keep it fun.
  3. Incorporating character reference sheets helps maintain consistency in drawing characters when telling a story. This is crucial for clear storytelling in comics.

Designing for a single purpose

Product Identity • 118 implied HN points • 07 May 24
🪑 Design User Experience
  1. Focusing on one clear purpose can make products stand out and be more appreciated. For example, stores or brands that specialize in a single item often attract loyal customers.
  2. In tech, many products have become complex and cluttered by trying to do too much. This often leads to products losing their original charm and purpose.
  3. Going back to basics and simplifying can bring more joy to experiences, like reading on a Kindle without distractions. It helps us focus on what truly matters.

Transaction-Oriented Programming

Burning the Midnight Coffee • 64 implied HN points • 15 Nov 25
🕹 Technology User Experience
  1. Transaction-Oriented Programming focuses on breaking down tasks into user-relevant units of work, which can help structure software and make error handling clearer.
  2. Each unit of work should be treated as a transaction, ensuring it is either completed fully or not at all, which can improve reliability in software applications.
  3. Implementing ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) helps maintain integrity in software, especially when errors occur, making it easier to manage transactions.