AI agents are making full UI specs obsolete, so teams should build a “baby” app first
haltakov · x · 2026-07-21
Writing UI specs is becoming less useful as AI agents can build a simplified, usable prototype faster than teams can finish debating the feature.
- The author argues for making a “baby” version of the app: little or no backend, mocked data, mostly happy paths, but the real UI/UX.
- He says production apps are too complex for experimentation, while a baby app helps kill bad ideas quickly and expose good ones.
- In one consulting project, GPT-5.6 Sol used Computer Use to browse the real app and recreate it in about an hour, then he built a live prototype of a new feature with three prompts in 15 minutes.
- The post’s thesis: if you still need ten pages to explain an interaction, you may be using the wrong medium.
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