Taste

Buzzwords Beginner Also called: good taste, judgment

Definition

In AI conversations, taste means the judgment to tell good output from merely plausible output, and to know what is worth making at all. The dictionary sense is critical judgment or discernment. When a tool can produce five drafts in a minute, picking the right one, or rejecting all five, becomes the human part of the job.

In plain English

Taste is the thing that makes you delete the second paragraph. The model gave you five options. Taste is knowing the third one is right and the other four are slop.¹

In the real world

A designer rejecting the AI mockup in two seconds and not being able to fully explain why.
A founder saying “we hire for taste now” in an interview.
You, reading three AI-drafted emails and sending none of them.

When to use it

Describing what a person adds when the tool does the producing.
Hiring. “Can they tell good from plausible” is the question now.
Building it. Graham’s recipe: look at a lot of good work in your field, make a lot of things, notice what holds up.² The office version: when the AI gives you five drafts, pick one and say in one sentence why. Every time.

When not to use it

As an excuse. “It’s a taste thing” is sometimes true and sometimes a way to avoid explaining a decision. Graham’s point is that taste has reasons: simplicity, honesty, restraint.² Name them.

Good, bad, ugly

Good: puts a word on the human part of the job.
Bad: it sounds innate. It isn’t. It’s practice.²
Ugly: “taste” used to dress up “I prefer it” with no argument behind it.

Key facts

Dictionary: "Critical judgment, discernment, or appreciation." Merriam-Webster
The classic essay: "Taste for Makers," Paul Graham, 2002. Good design is simple, timeless, and hard.
Why now: When anyone can generate a draft, choosing the right one is the scarce part

Common questions

Why is everyone in tech suddenly talking about taste?

Because AI made producing things cheap. When the first draft is free, the person who can tell a good draft from a bad one is the bottleneck.

Can taste be learned?

Graham says yes: look at a lot of good work, make a lot of things, and notice what holds up. It's a muscle, not a gift.

Can AI have taste?

It gives you the average of everything it learned from. Average is, by definition, not taste. Whether that changes is an open argument.

References

tasteMerriam-WebsterView source
Taste for MakersPaul Graham · 2002-02-01View source