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May 14, 2025
May 14, 2025
This year, Config 2025 took place across two continents—a three-day summit in San Francisco, and a one-day event in London. Dscout acted as a core sponsor for the San Francisco conference, and designers Tanner Van Dera and Lauren Hughes attended. Their highlights cover a wide range of subjects, from Figma’s new tools to the most impactful presentations.
Tanner Van Dera is a Senior Product Designer at Dscout.
Lauren Hughes is a Lead Product Designer at Dscout.
Tanner: Config was energizing and inspiring, sparking many new ideas for our team—especially around Figma’s latest tools like Make, Sites, and Draw. From thought-provoking talks on accessibility and system-building to meaningful conversations about the evolving role of research in design, the event highlighted both the challenges and the opportunities ahead.
It was powerful to represent Dscout among a small group of sponsors and connect with designers eager to bring user insights into their work earlier and more often. I left feeling proud, motivated, and overflowing with ideas for our next chapter.
Lauren: This was my first Config, and it was genuinely awe-inspiring. Being surrounded by so many designers and creatives created a kind of energy you don’t experience often—collaborative, thoughtful, and full of opportunity.
Hearing Figma’s product announcements live, then immediately catching the buzz of reactions in hallways and follow-up sessions, felt rare and exciting. San Francisco delivered the perfect backdrop—sunny, welcoming, and a fitting setting for a few days that felt open-ended in the best way.
Lauren: I think we were all expecting big announcements—especially around prototyping—but I don’t think anyone saw four new products dropping at once. Figma’s clearly aiming to own the entire design process. Tanner and I were sitting together just thinking, “Okay…what are they taking on next?”
For our team, I’m especially excited about Make and the potential to level up our prototyping—fewer tangled noodles, no tool-switching, and more power all within Figma. Figma Grids feels like a game-changer for our design system, building on the strength of Auto Layout. And Figma Draw is going to be super useful for quick icon creation.
Tanner: So many talks really stuck with me. Smith & Diction made a compelling case for sharing more of our work publicly—not just polished outcomes, but full decks. What could we offer the Figma community that reveals how we think, not just what we make?
Augmental reframed accessibility in a powerful way: 'We’re all temporarily abled.' That line hit hard. Accessibility isn’t a niche—it’s a shared human reality.
Designers from Pixar and Walt Disney reminded us that great systems aren’t about control—they’re about enabling creativity. As a designer who builds tools for others building tools, this felt familiar and deeply resonant. The best tools don’t dictate the outcome; they empower others to create with confidence.
Lauren: Michelle Lee’s talk on play and friction was a highlight—joyful, weird, and surprisingly profound. It reminded me how constraints can actually spark creativity and connection.
Andy Welfle’s “Writing is Designing” hit home, too. The idea of language as atomic design thinking? As a designer working on our content system here at Dscout, this really resonated with me! It emphasized the case for why words deserve a seat at the table from the start.
Another standout was Subham Agarwal’s talk on when products should die. Her RADAR (Read, Assess, Decide, Act, Review) framework was useful, but it was her honesty that stuck with me—“Frameworks are just a compass. You still have to walk on your own.”
Tanner: One thing that stood out to me at Config was how naturally AI is starting to blend into our conversations. AI wasn't front and center in messaging, yet it was everywhere in the work. AI is already feeling less like a separate tool, and more like an invisible collaborator.
It’s no longer about if we’ll use AI in our workflows, but instead how we shape it to reflect our values, our intent, and our users. Designers aren’t just curious about what GenAI can do, they’re asking what it should do, and how to stay in the driver’s seat. That’s where the future feels exciting to me—not in automation, but in augmentation.
Lauren: Okay, hear me out: this might sound odd, because AI was everywhere, but at the same time, it kind of...wasn’t. Yes, AI clearly powered nearly everything Figma announced. But unlike last year, where it was all “AI, AI, AI,” this year it felt more like an unspoken assumption—AI was simply embedded in the tools, part of the flow, no longer needing a spotlight.
There were no flashy sparkles or big announcements of “our new AI feature.” Instead, people talked about prompts, inputs, and outcomes as if AI were just a natural part of the process. And honestly, it was kind of refreshing. It’s already becoming the standard—an expectation rather than a headline.
Tanner: Config was a reminder of how deeply connected design and research has become. Regarding designers specifically, a major theme was validated across many conversations I had: designers are ready (and excited) to be the flag-bearers of their own research and testing. At the same time, they also don’t want added complexity.
The message was clear—help us do the heavy lifting. There’s a real opportunity to build tools that make research more accessible, lightweight, and embedded in the design process itself.
Tanner Van Dera
Senior Product Designer at Dscout
Lauren: It was a pretty unique (and very meta) experience—being a designer at a research company, talking with other designers about their research needs. Hanging out at the Dscout booth, I had so many great conversations that reminded me just how differently design and research teams are structured across companies.
“One thing came through clearly: designers want to be more involved in research.
Lauren Hughes
Lead Product Designer at Dscout
Tanner: Config was an enlightening experience. Sharing space with thousands of designers and engaging in conversations with leaders across industries offered profound insight into the diversity of our field. One thing felt clear: this moment in tech is unlike any other, and the scale of opportunity is limitless.
I’m excited to get back to work, contribute to the shifts underway, and explore bold new ways of working.
Lauren: Overall, I left Config feeling genuinely inspired and energized about the future of design, AI, and research. Things are shifting fast, but there was such a strong sense of community—this feeling of “we’re in it together”—that made all the change feel a little more exciting and a lot less overwhelming.
I’m especially looking forward to seeing how our team puts Figma’s new tools to work. I’ve got high hopes (and high expectations!) for what we’ll create for both designers and researchers. Also, turns out designers really love good swag—and we delivered. I can’t wait to spot Dscout hats, cat socks, and pins out in the wild.
