Key facts
- President Donald Trump established the National Design Studio (NDS) to redesign government websites.
- The NDS aims to update web standards and overhaul 27,000 dot-gov websites.
- A year into the initiative, progress has been slow, with few substantial launches.
- Critics point to AI-generated content, accessibility issues, and potential privacy concerns.
- NDS has reportedly built versions of services belonging to other agencies, such as vote.gov and passport.gov.
President Donald Trump's ambitious plan to overhaul all U.S. government websites using AI and establish new design standards has faced significant setbacks and criticism a year after its inception. The National Design Studio (NDS), created by executive order in August of the previous year, was tasked with updating the U.S. Web Design System (USWDS) and redesigning approximately 27,000 dot-gov websites within three years.
However, the initiative, dubbed "America by Design," has been hampered by deep cuts to agencies previously responsible for web improvements, including the dismantling of the 18F technology unit and restructuring of the U.S. Digital Service. These teams had previously struggled to get agencies to adopt new web standards, with only about 30 percent of government websites compliant with USWDS by mid-2023. The USWDS team itself was reportedly reduced to a single full-time employee after Trump took office.
About a year into NDS's operation, its accomplishments are meager. While it modernized the federal retirement system, former government workers accused the administration of overstating credit for a project already in progress. The NDS's other outputs have been largely single-page websites or redirects, with limited functionality beyond sign-up forms. Notable examples include TrumpRX.gov, which offers a drug price comparison tool but requires users to visit legacy sites for other functions, and several newly registered domains that redirect to older sites.
Concerns have also surfaced regarding the use of AI in design. An AI-generated image on TrumpRX.gov depicted a child with six toes running towards a flag without stars, drawing criticism. A design for CIO.gov was pulled after being labeled inaccessible and potentially exposing the design system, with commenters suggesting it was generated by an AI with flaws. Critics argue that the focus on AI and a desire for an "Apple Store-like experience" has led to rushed rollouts and accessibility issues, potentially eroding visitor trust.
Further scrutiny has come from investigative outlets like The Drey Dossier and The Guardian, which questioned the status of unlaunched sensitive domains like vote.gov and passport.gov. Investigations suggest NDS built versions of services legally assigned to other agencies, raising questions about data retention policies and privacy impact assessments, particularly concerning the centralization of sensitive data within the White House.