The Captain's Log

Evaluating Tools Building Apps AI Design

March 10, 2026

Comparing Models: The Reference Photo Test

We tested seven AI image generation models on one specific task — turning app screenshots into marketing-ready mockup photos.

I needed a phone mockup for an app store listing. Take a screenshot, feed it to an image model as a reference photo, get back a lifestyle shot of the phone on a nice surface. Should take five minutes.

March 05, 2026

The Designer's Advantage When Building with AI

Design skills don't just survive the shift to AI-native building — they're the advantage. The user-centric lens, communication precision, and ownership mindset that designers bring are exactly what pure developers miss.

March 03, 2026

How the Figma Loop Collapsed

A year ago I lived inside Figma. Now I spend 70% of my day in the terminal. Here's how the shift happened and what I still use design tools for.

March 02, 2026

From React to Astro with Claude

We migrated our entire site from React to Astro in a single sitting. The hard part wasn't the migration — it was admitting the old setup was wrong.

March 02, 2026

You Need Influence, Not Influencers

We built an AI actor that hit 1M views in a month — then we built the tool that makes them.

March 01, 2026

Good enough design when building with AI

You've been letting go of your designs your entire career — the difference now is you can finally own what ships.