How to Use AI as an Editor, Not a Writer: Ed White

Ed White has a rule he's tested on his own writing: hold yourself as the writer, and let AI be your editor. Ed is a Senior Design Director at IDEO's London studio, where he co-leads the firm's AI portfolio across Europe. Before IDEO, he spent 12 years as a writer and editor at the Financial Times, Wired, and Contagious. So when he talks about when to use AI for storytelling and when not to, it comes from two decades of crafting his storytelling skills.

In this episode, Mina Seetharaman talks with Ed about two specific tools he uses to keep AI in an editor's seat: a "roasting agent" prompted to critique his drafts without any sugarcoating, and a simulated audience he rehearses pitches on before the real thing. They also get into what Ed is hearing from design leaders at Anthropic, Lovable, Shopify, and Google Creative Lab about how creative work is changing, and why he thinks the friction of writing something yourself is worth protecting rather than automating away.

Related Resources:

Ed is one of three instructors behind IDEO U's new course, Creative Storytelling with AI. Learn more here: https://www.ideou.com/products/creative-storytelling-with-ai

Ed’s interviews with design leaders on the changing nature of creativity include this one with Lovable’s Nad Chishtie: https://www.ideo.com/journal/building-the-last-piece-of-software

Follow Ed on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-white-59b9a63/

In This Episode:

Timestamps are approximate due to edits and ad breaks

(00:00) What a good editor does for your story

(01:00) Mina introduces Ed White, Senior Design Director at IDEO's London studio

(03:13) Why storytelling with AI isn't about outsourcing your thinking

(03:44) Ed's founding rule: "Don't think of it as a writer. Hold yourself as a writer."