In a groundbreaking shift, artificial intelligence is fundamentally changing how websites and applications are created. Leading this transformation is a new design pattern called "Agent Experience" (AX), which focuses on optimizing how AI agents and humans collaborate in the development process.

According to Netlify CEO Matt Biilmann, over 1,000 websites are now being created daily on their platform directly through ChatGPT. This remarkable statistic highlights how AI is becoming central to initiating development projects.

The Rise of AI-Powered Development

The surge in AI-assisted development is driven by two main use cases. Developers are using AI to quickly create temporary sites for sharing information or presentations. More notably, both experienced programmers and newcomers are leveraging AI to jumpstart new projects.

A new category of development tools, known as "agentic IDEs," has emerged to support this trend. Recent launches include Bolt, Windsurf, and Lovable - specialized environments designed for AI-assisted coding. Major platforms like Replit and Vercel have also introduced their own AI automation products.

Designing for Human-AI Collaboration

The concept of Agent Experience emerged from the realization that AI agents interact with development platforms differently than human users. For example, agents need specific authentication flows and the ability to deploy sites before user accounts are created.

However, AX goes beyond just improving the agent experience. "What you need to think through is how you make the experience better for an agent collaborating with a human," explains Biilmann.

Looking Toward Open Standards

As AI agents become more integral to web development, there's a growing need for industry standards. Biilmann advocates for open standards in AI agents, similar to existing web standards. This approach would allow developers to choose their preferred agents while maintaining interoperability.

To promote this vision, Netlify has launched AgentExperience.ax, a community resource for defining and advancing AX concepts. The initiative aims to shape how AI agents and humans will collaborate in the future of web development.

The emergence of Agent Experience marks a new chapter in software development, where AI becomes not just a tool, but an active participant in the creative process.