Chat is AI's command line: Amelia Wattenberger on why AI interfaces need direct manipulation, not just chat
Wattenberger · x · 2026-10-01
- Designer Amelia Wattenberger argues AI products keep cramming everything into chat, just as early computing leaned on the command line. Chat suits rough direction, not fine-grained tweaks—sometimes you just want to reach in and move something.
- She mines HCI history for inspiration: Sketchpad (1963) for direct manipulation, VisiCalc (1979) for edit-and-see modeling, Xerox Star (1981) for giving work a home.
- Example vision: AI auto-visualizes a trip plan on a timeline; you drag lunch later or add a stop, and the computer maintains travel times and opening hours.
- Core claim: combine chat with direct manipulation instead of letting chat become AI's only interface.
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