AI isn’t just changing the tools designers use. It’s changing how they build, ship, and stand out. In this episode of Design Review, Stephen Haney, founder of AI-native design tool Paper, joins YC General Partner Aaron Epstein to demo the agent-first workflow that’s making Paper one of the fastest-growing design tools since Figma. Using live redesigns of user-submitted websites as examples, they break down the most common AI design tells, show how to fix them in seconds, and explain why the biggest risk for founders isn’t moving too slow, it’s shipping something that looks like everyone else.
Chapters:
00:00 – Great companies have great design
01:04 – What is Paper and why build it?
03:17 – What makes Paper agent-native
05:11 – Demo: Shaders, image generation, and brand design
11:32 – Design-to-code and the new agent stack
16:48 – Design Review: Legion Health
24:11 – How to avoid AI design slop
28:26 – Design Review: Sytex
32:42 – The biggest tells of AI-generated design
37:39 – Design Review: Moreta
41:11 – Can AI learn taste?
43:56 – How Paper uses agents internally
46:52 – Building a community around Paper
49:15 – Lessons from Steven’s first startup
53:30 – What’s next for design and Paper
Apply to Y Combinator: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply
Work at a startup: https://www.ycombinator.com/jobs
