AI + a16z

Ryo Lu (Cursor): AI Turns Designers to Developers

Episode Summary

Ryo Lu spent years watching his designs die in meetings. Then he discovered the tool that lets designers ship code at the speed of thought: Cursor, the company where Ryo is now Head of Design. In this episode, we sit down with a16z General Partner Jennifer Li and Ryo Lu to discuss why "taste" is the wrong framework for understanding the future, why purposeful apps are "selfish," how System 7 holds secrets about AI interfaces, and the radical bet that one codebase can serve everyone if you design the concepts right instead of the buttons.

Episode Notes

Ryo Lu spent years watching his designs die in meetings. Then he discovered the tool that lets designers ship code at the speed of thought: Cursor, the company where Ryo is now Head of Design. In this episode, we discuss why "taste" is the wrong framework for understanding the future, why purposeful apps are "selfish," how System 7 holds secrets about AI interfaces, and the radical bet that one codebase can serve everyone if you design the concepts right instead of the buttons.

Follow Ryo Lu on X: https://x.com/ryolu_

Check Out Ryo’s Website: https://os.ryo.lu/

Follow Jennifer Li on X: https://x.com/JenniferHli

Follow Erik Torenberg on X: https://x.com/eriktorenberg