My experience at Figma Config ‘24
Excerpts from the design conference, straight from San Francisco
For over 5 years, I have been a power user of Figma. Attending Config, Figma’s annual conference, has always been on my list of things to do. The closest I’ve gotten to it was attending the watch parties in Bangalore with the Friends of Figma community. These local events were exciting, but I knew the actual Config experience in the Bay Area would be on a completely different level.
I had little to no idea as to what to expect out of the actual conference, barring the keynotes and the networking, since I had never attended a conference of this magnitude. This year, Config boasted some 12,000 attendees and over 100 speakers, a scale that was both intimidating and thrilling.
To perfectly encapsulate my entire experience (and as promised on my LinkedIn post), here are 4 excerpts from the week of the conference:
Chapter 1: Embracing the global design community
The design community is HUGE. It’s massive. Living in Bangalore, my exposure to the design world has been fairly decent but relatively limited compared to the global scene. However, on the other side (of the world), San Francisco was filled with tens of thousands of designers flocking in from different parts of the world to attend Config. In order to make the best use of this opportunity, multiple organizations held community meetups across SF for designers to meet, connect and socialize. I attended a bunch of these events, pre and post conference. It starts days in advance, and goes into the weekend after the conference ends as well.
These events were incredible networking opportunities, allowing me to engage with industry leaders, up-and-coming designers and fellow enthusiasts. One standout event was hosted by SoulDoodles to kick off Config week. The session focused on overcoming imposter syndrome and was both deeply connecting and insightful. We were randomly assigned to groups where we shared our experiences and listened to other designers’ imposter syndrome stories. It was a powerful reminder that we’re not alone in moments like these, while creating a strong sense of camaraderie among us.
Lilibeth Bustos Linares, spearheaded the talk on dealing with imposter syndrome at Freepik HQ. She brought a level of authenticity and vulnerability that resonated with everyone present. Her insights were invaluable and set a supportive tone for the rest of the week.
Chapter 2: The calm before the storm
While Config was officially a 2-day event, Config Commons extended the experience to three days. It served as the perfect precursor — the calm (well, not really) before the storm, and a solid networking session.
The atmosphere at Config Commons was electric. Yerba Buena Gardens was taken over by Figma, filled with kick-ass music, food and drinks. The energy was palpable as designers from various backgrounds mingled and exchanged ideas. It was an ideal setting to relax and connect before diving into the more intense parts of the conference. Add hundreds of designers to the mix, and you get an unforgettable party. I got to meet some cool design influencers too!
Chapter 3: The opening keynote (that divided the room)
As I was mentally preparing for the opening keynote, I very much expected AI to be one of the major pillars of the new Figma updates. But not to the extent in which it turned out to be. Firstly, this is what Dylan Field (Co-founder & CEO of Figma) wore on stage:
His “Made with AI” T-shirt definitely seemed to echo with the updates he had to share on stage. The new AI assistant in Figma now lets you “make designs” from a prompt to beat the fear of a blank canvas. As this was announced, there were cheers in certain pockets of the crowd. The first thought that struck me was that the importance of details and nuances that designers bring to the table is higher than ever. Or as Figma says — “Your craft is the differentiator”. Designers have the power to ship extra-ordinary products by focussing on craft.
However, not everyone was thrilled about this feature. I spoke to a few designers who were less enthusiastic. One remarked, “As a designer, I feel like I thrive on a blank canvas. That’s my job.” This sentiment sparked discussions and tweets, becoming a running theme throughout the day.
Update: As I write this article, Figma just announced that they will be disabling the “make design” feature as it was called out on X to be trained on Apple’s data. 👀 Interesting times.
Chapter 4: Insights from other keynotes
Notable callouts from some of my favorite keynotes
- The Browser Company of New York: Start with people. Tell the store that scares you the most
- Lane Patrick Shackleton of Coda: A good system is essential to achieve your goal. Define product principles that help you in building a good system. Because:
- Mike Stern & Linda Dong from the Apple Vision Pro team: The initial user interfaces mimicked real-world objects like clocks, calculators, trash bins, files, folders and hardware elements such as sliders and buttons. As design evolved, color and lighting were introduced, resulting in clunky buttons and more visually dynamic interfaces. However, as people change, interfaces must also adapt. Today, real and abstract concepts coexist seamlessly in products like AirTag, Siri and gestural inputs. Software has become increasingly lifelike, evolving beyond mere visuals to create environments users can exist within. When designing for Vision Pro, it’s crucial to make it feel as close to the real world as possible. Incorporating depth and scale into these experiences enhances their realism significantly.
- Lenny’s Podcast with Dylan Field (Live): The more debate around a topic, the better. Depth in any conversation is crucial, so keep asking questions. The more you add, the lesser the chance of maintaining coherence. Always ask yourself: “Is there a simpler way to do this?” Keep the simple things simple and make the complex things possible. One of the beautiful aspects of software is the ability to iterate quickly compared to physical products.
The spirit of Config
As Config 2024 comes to a close, I’ll fondly remember the incredible people I met, the thought-provoking keynotes I attended and the unforgettable experiences I had throughout the week. This conference has deepened my love for the community and also reignited my passion for design. I leave with a wealth of new insights, connections and inspiration. Here’s to hoping I can experience it all in person again in 2025, continuing to grow and evolve with this amazing community. Until then, I’ll carry the spirit of Config with me.
