Defensive UX as a core pattern for GenAI Applications

Why Defensive UX is Crucial in GenAI products

When introducing GenAI products into the pharmaceutical industry, it's not just about what AI can do—it's also about how it's used. That's where Defensive UX comes in, ensuring that interactions with AI are as clear and error-free as possible. GenAI is still error prone. Designing GenAI products like CoPilots thus need to be implemented with core patterns in mind. One we discussed already in my previous article about GuardRails (Guardrails in LLM Applications for the Pharmaceutical Industry | LinkedIn). The second pattern focuses on GUI Design and the principals necessary to compensate nondeterministic behavior in applications.

What Is Defensive UX?

Defensive UX is all about designing systems that anticipate and prevent user mistakes. It creates an intuitive experience that helps users navigate AI tools effectively, avoiding confusion and errors before they happen. At this point I would like to recommend Microsoft's Guidelines for Human-AI Interaction (Guidelines for Human-AI Interaction - Microsoft Research).

How Does Defensive UX Work?

Defensive UX: It's a design strategy that comes into play when things go wrong with AI-driven tools. It's about expecting the unexpected, knowing that errors like inaccuracies or unexpected responses from machine learning (ML) or large language models (LLMs) are bound to occur. Here's how it tackles these challenges:

• Guiding User Behavior ??: It starts with the system guiding users clearly on how to interact with it. This could mean intuitive layouts, predictable responses, and step-by-step assistance, making sure users always know what to do next.
• Averting Misuse ?: Defensive UX designs systems to prevent misuse by setting limits on what can be done within them. This could involve safeguards that prevent users from entering invalid data or using the system in unintended ways.
• Handling Errors Gracefully ??: Even with the best designs, errors will happen. Defensive UX ensures these errors don’t stop users in their tracks. It provides helpful error messages, easy ways to undo mistakes, and sometimes, even anticipates and corrects errors before users notice them.

Why is Defensive UX Important in AI Applications?

AI and ML models are complex and not perfect. They can produce unexpected outcomes based on the data they receive or how they're programmed to learn. Here's what Defensive UX does to manage this:

• Increases Accessibility: By making systems easier to understand and interact with, Defensive UX reduces the barrier to using advanced technology. It makes sure that users know the capabilities and limitations of AI features, which helps them use these tools more effectively.
• Builds Trust: Users feel more confident in using AI systems when they see that the systems can handle errors smoothly and maintain data integrity. Knowing that the system won't let them down in tricky situations builds user trust.
• Improves Overall User Experience: By smoothing over the rough edges of AI interactions, Defensive UX ensures that users have a positive experience even when things go wrong. It turns potentially frustrating situations into ones that users can handle easily, making the whole experience more enjoyable and stress-free.

Applying Defensive UX

Implementing Defensive UX isn't just about good intentions; it requires thoughtful design and continuous improvement. Here’s how some guidelines help shape it:

• Microsoft’s Human-AI Interaction Guidelines: These guidelines emphasize clarity and responsiveness. For instance, they suggest making clear what the AI system can do and how well it can do it, which helps set realistic expectations.
• Google’s People + AI Guidebook: This resource focuses on practical advice for building trustworthy AI applications. It suggests designing systems that are transparent about their capabilities and limitations and that adapt to users' needs over time.
• Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines for Machine Learning: Apple’s guidelines focus on integrating AI smoothly into user interfaces. They advocate for systems that enhance the user experience without overwhelming the user with complexity or making them feel like they’re losing control.

Why Is Defensive UX Important for the pharmaceutical industry specifically?

In our industry, where accuracy is critical, Defensive UX is essential because:

- It ensures accuracy and safety: By reducing user errors, it helps protect patient safety and maintain data integrity.

- It increases efficiency: It streamlines workflows, letting healthcare professionals focus on their primary tasks without technology getting in the way.

- It builds trust: When AI systems are reliable and easy to use, it boosts confidence in the technology, which is vital for its adoption.

Examples of Defensive UX

1. AWS HealthScribe: This service automates the creation of clinical documentation by analyzing patient-clinician conversations. It enhances clinician productivity by allowing easy review, acceptance, rejection, or editing of AI-generated insights. Each AI-generated summary comes with traceable transcript references for quick accuracy verification, embodying a key principle of defensive UX by fostering easy validation and corrections.

2. Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Voice Assistant (V-EVA): Designed to streamline medical workflows through voice commands, this assistant helps clinicians perform various tasks like updating patient information or ordering tests efficiently. It offers multimodal responses (text on screens along with voice responses) to cater to the fast-paced environment of medical settings, allowing for quicker reference and reducing chances for errors.ples of Defensive UX

1. AWS HealthScribe: This service automates the creation of clinical documentation by analyzing patient-clinician conversations. It enhances clinician productivity by allowing easy review, acceptance, rejection, or editing of AI-generated insights. Each AI-generated summary comes with traceable transcript references for quick accuracy verification, embodying a key principle of defensive UX by fostering easy validation and corrections.

2. Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Voice Assistant (V-EVA): Designed to streamline medical workflows through voice commands, this assistant helps clinicians perform various tasks like updating patient information or ordering tests efficiently. It offers multimodal responses (text on screens along with voice responses) to cater to the fast-paced environment of medical settings, allowing for quicker reference and reducing chances for errors.

Taking Defensive UX Further

Defensive UX can also include more advanced features, like:

- Contextual Awareness: The system can detect the context of a user’s actions and preemptively offer help or prevent errors based on that specific context.

- Personalization: Adjusting the interface and interactions based on an individual user’s behavior and preferences makes the experience more intuitive.

The Impact of Defensive UX

Defensive UX is about putting the user at the center of technology design, particularly in sectors where technology has a direct impact on health. As AI becomes more common in pharmaceuticals, ensuring these systems are easy and error-free to use is crucial. It’s about making powerful technology helpful and manageable, supporting healthcare professionals in their important work.

By focusing on Defensive UX, we can develop AI applications that reduce and compensate issues with GenAI products already by design.