Scoring Show HN submissions for AI design patterns
Article
TL;DR
21% of recent Show HN sites show 5+ deterministic AI design patterns; 33% are clean.
Key Takeaways
- Colored left borders, Space Grotesk font, gradient heroes are top AI design signals
- 67% of Show HN submissions have at least 2 AI design patterns detectable via CSS/DOM
- These patterns predated AI; the critique conflates AI tools with bad taste
Discussion
Top comments:
-
[jerf]: 10k lines of code no longer signals weeks of work; proof-of-work is dead
In 2026, 10,000 lines of code means they spent a minimum amount of money on it.
- [dang]: HN added showlim filter for new accounts, explaining the rightward dip
- [nomdep]: These patterns existed before AI; blame TailwindUI and shadcn