Why Microsoft’s New Icons Are Winning Over Apple Fans

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Welcome to AI Design Proposal! Today we’re spotlighting how the Foo Fighters just flipped the script on AI in music—by using it to poke fun at itself. The result? A chaotic, silly, and oddly refreshing video that proves human creativity still rocks hardest.3 Reasons Firefly Boards Could Be Adobe’s Most Interesting New App

• Why Microsoft’s New Icons Are Winning Over Apple Fans

• Create Stunning Art in Seconds—Just Type Your Idea

• Quick Tips

• 5 AI design tools

Read time: 4 minutes

Today’s AI Design Breakthrough

Why Microsoft’s New Icons Are Winning Over Apple Fans

TL;DR

Microsoft rolled out updated icons for its Office apps and, despite mixed reactions at launch, the designs are earning praise—especially among fans of Apple—because they lean into Apple’s “Liquid Glass” aesthetic, a translucent, layered visual trend, and the execution is sharper than expected.

Short Paragraphs

Earlier this month Microsoft unveiled a fresh set of icons for its core Office 365/365 apps—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and more. The redesign retains recognizable brand letters and colours, but introduces smoother curves, layered translucency and a refined material feel.
Although some longtime users initially reacted unfavourably—calling the look “too slick” or “trying to copy Apple”—the new icons are being praised for how they embrace the “Liquid Glass” material aesthetic that Apple introduced in its recent OS update, giving Microsoft’s icons an unexpectedly premium, modern feel.

Highlights

• Microsoft’s design piece calls out key values: fluidity, play, simplicity and approachability in the new icons.

• The visual shift includes curved forms, rich gradients, soft folds instead of sharp edges—moving away from the rigid, flat icon style of previous versions.

• Apple’s “Liquid Glass” material is characterised by translucency, layered depth and dynamic interaction, and Microsoft’s icons appear to borrow from that aesthetic in a subtle but deliberate way.

• The redesign is more than cosmetic: Microsoft ties the icon update to deeper signal of how Office apps are evolving around AI, collaboration and fluid workflows.

Why It Matters

• Material & brand convergence: Microsoft tapping into Apple’s Liquid Glass style shows how major brands are adopting and adapting visual materials across ecosystems—blurring lines between “platform‑native” looks.

• Symbolic vs functional change: The icon redesign is small in terms of app functionality, but symbolically it communicates Microsoft’s strategic shift (towards fluid collaboration, AI‑driven experiences) and signals a new era for Office.

• Alignment with broader trends: For design teams, this reinforces how material design trends (glass, translucency, layered depth) are resurging after years of ultra‑flat minimalism.

• Legacy vs innovation balance: Microsoft had to retain visual cues (“the X for Excel”, colours of Word, etc.) so users recognise the apps, while introducing fresh forms that give a sense of innovation—showing how to balance familiarity and evolution well.

Actionable Insight

• Audit your iconography and design assets: if you haven’t re‑worked your system in a few years, consider whether a material update (translucent layers, softer curves, depth) could refresh perception without losing brand equity.

• When adopting a material design (e.g., Liquid Glass, neomorphism, glassmorphism), define why you’re doing it—what metaphor or experience it supports—not just because it’s trendy.

• In your next redesign, link icon/graphic updates to a strategic story (e.g., “our product is now about AI‑augmented collaboration, so our visuals reflect flow and depth”) to give the changes purpose beyond aesthetics.

• Test user recognition: when updating icons, maintain recognisable elements (shapes, colours) and measure whether users still identify the app or brand instantly—balance innovation with usability.

Tool Spotlight

Create Stunning Art in Seconds—Just Type Your Idea

Tool of the Day: Midjourney

• A leading AI image-generation tool that transforms simple text prompts into striking visual artwork, perfect for mood boards, concept art, and design exploration.

• Scenario:
  Use Midjourney when you need fast, high-quality visual ideas — during early-stage concepting, moodboard creation, or client presentations.

• Value:
  What it solves and why it’s worth using:

  • Translates rough concepts into high-fidelity visual inspiration with minimal effort.

  • Great for non-designers or teams without in-house illustrators.

  • Offers consistent art direction and style control through prompt tuning.

• How it works:
  You input a text prompt (like "futuristic café interior, minimal, warm lighting, isometric"), and Midjourney uses its proprietary AI model to generate four image options in under a minute via Discord. You can then upscale, vary, or refine images based on your vision. Its strong stylization makes it a favorite for concept artists and visual designers.

Prompt of the Day

Today's Style: Neo-Vintage Toon

Example:

Quick Tips

Title: Transform Spaces with Interior AI’s Material Replacement Feature

Tip: Use Interior AI to experiment with different materials and finishes for your interior designs instantly.

How to:

1. Upload Your Space: Start by uploading a photo of the interior space you want to modify.

2. Select Material Replacement: Choose the feature to replace specific surfaces like walls, floors, or furniture.

3. Choose New Materials: Browse the material library (e.g., wood, marble, tiles, or fabrics) and apply your selection.

4. Preview the Transformation: Let AI process the image to generate a realistic visualization of the new materials in the space.

5. Refine and Download: Experiment with different combinations until satisfied, then download your updated design.

   

Recommended Tools Today

KWHero: Use AI to create content that’s perfectly optimized for search engines and user intent

Blogify: Revolutionize blogging with Blogify: Video/anything-to-blog, AI writing, SEO, autopilot posts & more

SUPERMACHINE:Generate stock photos, art, and images with the latest in AI technology

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Writecream: Your secret weapon for SEO, sales & marketing

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