Elevating Your Design Process: A Deep Dive into Figma’s AI-Powered First Draft

Figma reintroduced First Draft on September 24, 2024, after initially launching it in June 2024 under the name "Make Designs." The tool faced issues that led to its temporary removal, but now returns with improvements, addressing prior concerns.

Mendy Berrebi
By Mendy Berrebi
6 Min Read

In the ever-evolving digital design world, Figma continues to push boundaries with First Draft, its new AI-driven feature. This tool does more than just speed up design—it enhances creativity, helps break through creative blocks, and empowers designers to elevate their work. Whether you’re an independent designer, part of an agency, or working in a product team, First Draft by Figma could reshape your entire approach to design projects.

What is First Draft by Figma?

At its core, First Draft is a generative AI tool integrated within Figma. It is designed to jumpstart the design process by producing initial layouts based on simple text prompts. Imagine telling Figma, “Create a modern minimalist homepage for a mobile app,” and within moments, you have a polished draft that captures your vision. This feature ensures your creative flow never stalls with the dreaded “Where do I begin?” moments.

Why It Matters

For designers struggling with a blank canvas, First Draft offers a starting point, generating layouts and components that can be easily tweaked and modified to suit specific project needs. The tool also reduces the time it takes to create a draft from scratch, allowing designers to explore different design directions faster.

Supercharging Creativity with AI-Generated Layouts

Gone are the days of staring at a blank screen waiting for inspiration to strike. With AI-generated layouts, Figma users can now create prototypes and test ideas faster than ever before. This feature is particularly useful for agencies managing multiple projects or client presentations, helping to streamline processes and reduce turnaround time.

Inspiration Meets Speed

The AI doesn’t impose final designs. Instead, it provides a solid starting point that you can refine, modify, or completely reinvent. This ensures that while First Draft provides assistance, creative control remains firmly in your hands.

Streamlining Tedious Tasks with Automation

While First Draft empowers designers creatively, it also saves time on mundane tasks. From renaming layers to removing image backgrounds and generating placeholder text, First Draft automates these repetitive actions, letting designers focus on higher-level creative decisions.

Automatic Text and Image Generation

Instead of manually inserting placeholder text, First Draft can automatically generate realistic copy for your mockups. Additionally, the tool can isolate backgrounds from images, ensuring you can focus on refining your design without needing to switch between apps.

One-Click Prototyping

Perhaps one of the most game-changing features, one-click prototyping, allows users to transform static designs into interactive prototypes in seconds. This is a massive time saver for teams needing to quickly test ideas and present them to stakeholders.

Collaborative Power: How First Draft Enhances Teamwork

First Draft isn’t just a solo tool. In collaborative environments, it allows teams to work more effectively. Whether you’re a designer working alongside developers or part of a creative agency, First Draft helps ensure everyone is on the same page.

Real-Time Feedback for Faster Iteration

With AI-powered design generation, teams can create and share drafts quickly, receiving feedback in real time. This feedback loop can accelerate project timelines, reducing bottlenecks and fostering a more dynamic workflow.

Looking Ahead: The Future of AI-Driven Design

The potential of First Draft extends far beyond the current AI-generated layouts. As Figma continues to advance its AI capabilities, we can expect to see even more customization options such as stylistic adjustments and intelligent suggestions. The future promises more powerful tools to further democratize the design process.

Privacy and Control

Figma takes user privacy seriously. While First Draft uses AI to generate layouts, none of your personal project data is used to train the AI model. This ensures you maintain full control over your designs while benefiting from AI assistance.

First Draft and the Democratization of Design

One of the most exciting aspects of First Draft is how it democratizes design. Traditionally, high-quality design work required years of expertise. But with AI-powered layouts and prototyping, even non-designers can now experiment with concepts and ideas.

Empowering Non-Designers

This tool opens new doors for product managers, developers, and content creators to collaborate more easily with design teams. It enables faster onboarding for new team members, making it easier for agencies to manage resources.

Getting Started with First Draft: What You Need to Know

While First Draft is currently in beta, all Figma users can request access. For designers, developers, and digital agencies curious about the future of AI-powered design, signing up is a must. Figma provides thorough documentation on how to integrate this tool into your workflow and make the most of its prototyping and automation capabilities.

In Conclusion

First Draft is more than just an AI tool—it represents the future of design, where technology and creativity seamlessly collaborate. Whether you’re a seasoned designer or just starting, First Draft will change the way you approach your projects, fostering a faster, smarter, and more creative workflow.

Are you ready to take your designs to the next level? Explore First Draft and experience how AI-powered design can transform your creative process!


Let us know in the comments how you plan to incorporate AI into your design workflow and what features excite you most about Figma’s First Draft!

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Hi, I’m Mendy BERREBI, a seasoned e-commerce director and AI expert with over 15 years of experience. My passion lies in driving innovation and harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to transform the way businesses operate. I specialize in helping e-commerce companies seamlessly integrate AI into their processes, unlocking new levels of efficiency and performance. Join me on this blog as we explore the future of digital transformation and how AI can elevate your business to new heights. Welcome aboard!
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