Aqua

YC design lead Ev shares how she uses coding agents and small custom tools to design websites, interactive experiences, and event branding. She presents Paxel, a tool for exploring coding-agent transcripts, and explains how detailed project context, mood boards, and rapid iterations help agents produce more distinctive designs. She also describes using Paper Design shaders and disposable tuning tools to refine visual details. The talk argues that designers can use agents to build both products and the tools that help them shape those products.

Tom, a YC partner, shares practical ways to get better results from vibe coding. He recommends planning features before implementation, working in small steps, using Git and high-level tests, and resetting when repeated fixes add complexity. He also covers debugging with logs and error messages, writing instructions for coding agents, using local documentation, and keeping code modular. His advice is to keep experimenting as AI models and tools change quickly.