60. Conversational Design and UI: Why Language Matters More Than Ever

What does it actually mean to design conversationally? Not "add a chatbot" — but genuinely apply the principles of human conversation to the systems we build? In this episode, host Laura Klein sits down with Erika Hall, author of Conversational Design and Just Enough Research, to re-visit a topic that's only gotten more relevant since her book came out in 2018. They dig into why language has always been an important part of any interface, what the cooperative principle of conversation can teach us about interaction design, and how the current AI moment is muddying what "conversational" even means. Erika also makes a sharp distinction between AI that solves real problems and AI that performs work — and offers a theory about why so many people are reaching for answer machines right now. Plus: why the best consulting advice is often just "you have to talk to each other," the role of domain expertise in getting anything useful out of an LLM, and what painting chickens has to do with learning to see. About Erika Hall | LinkedIn | Bluesky Her Studio - Mule Design Conversational Design Just Enough Research Related NN/G Articles: AI Chatbots Discourage Error Checking Designing AI Products and Features: Study Guide Sycophancy in Generative-AI Chatbots AI Features Must Solve Real User Problems Try One of Our Courses → Designing AI Experiences (Live Online) → The Human Mind and Usability (Live Online) → Understanding LLMs (Self-Paced) → Informative Microcopy (Self-Paced) Don’t forget to like and

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60. Conversational Design and UI: Why Language Matters More Than Ever is an episode from NN/g UX Podcast by Nielsen Norman Group.

This episode is 00:45:08 long.

This episode was published on Apr 29, 2026.

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