Why Interior Design Is Still a Human Business

Primary suite in progress. Waiting on artwork and new linens.

Every project starts long before I complete a room or purchase a single item. This Chapel Hill, NC project began with a rendering I created after meeting with the client in person — measuring the space carefully, presenting samples, and talking through options across several conversations.

That back-and-forth matters. Through it, we landed on selections that were right for the client's home and lifestyle, not just her aesthetic.

Take the details: we selected wool for the bedroom area rug because it's easy to clean, important in a home with a pet. We ruled out an upholstered headboard and drapery entirely because of the client's asthma. These aren't decisions a design algorithm suggests. They come from listening to my client. (It also helps that I've known for for about two decades.)

Getting to know a client — understanding their taste, budget, and how they actually live — is what drives every good interior design project from the first conversation to the final install. And that's exactly where the limits of AI-generated design become clear.

Can AI design a room? Yes. There are tools that can produce beautiful renderings quickly. What they cannot do is sit across from a client, pick up on what she hesitates over, explain why one fabric will hold up better than another in her specific situation and needs, or talk her down from a choice that photographs well but won't work in practice for her and her husband. AI can generate options. It cannot advise.

There's also sourcing — knowing where to find suitable products for a client, at the right price point, from vendors the designer trusts. There's also the ordering, the follow-up with vendors, and making sure what arrives is actually what was specified and arrived undamaged. It takes a human being to open a box to examine the product.

And then there's installation day. I was on-site for this client's project to oversee every piece as it came in, make real-time decisions, and ensure the finished room matched the vision we'd built together. My presence wasn't optional. It's part of an interior designer's job.