Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Most people don't get into design systems to be a cop. But we've become exactly that. Product teams go around us while we create rules nobody follows. Punk figured this out decades ago. You need shared ethos, basic infrastructure, and people who care. Quality comes from culture, not compliance. Drawing from years running an indie record label and nearly 10 years leading systems at scale at Block, Dropbox, and Expedia, this talk applies punk's blueprint to systems. AI handed designers the means of production. The gatekeeping model is dead. Stop managing systems. Start nurturing subcultures.
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Find us on ⬇️
X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/figma
Instagram: instagram.com/figma
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/figma
TikTok: tiktok.com/@figma
Figma forum: forum.figma.com
Most people don't get into design systems to be a cop. But we've become exactly that. Product teams go around us while we create rules nobody follows. Punk figured this out decades ago. You need shared ethos, basic infrastructure, and people who care. Quality comes from culture, not compliance. Drawing from years running an indie record label and nearly 10 years leading systems at scale at Block, Dropbox, and Expedia, this talk applies punk's blueprint to systems. AI handed designers the means of production. The gatekeeping model is dead. Stop managing systems. Start nurturing subcultures.
____________________________________________________
Find us on ⬇️
X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/figma
Instagram: instagram.com/figma
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/figma
TikTok: tiktok.com/@figma
Figma forum: forum.figma.com










