The hub of the Quantum UX framework: what QUX is, the actor concept XCI, and the components (UXQ, QUXE, XEl) that make experiences fluid and generative.
Quantum UX (QUX) is a UX paradigm based on overlapping, multiform and multidimensional experiences. Unlike rigid frameworks, it is amorphous and fluid. It rests on XCI (which replaces the ‘human’ of HCI with any actor: human, animal, mechanical or cybernetic) and three components: UX Quanta (UXQ, probabilistic sets of processes), Quantum UX Energy (QUXE, the information flows that animate a static system) and Experience Elements (XEl, elastic, multidimensional building blocks). It is generative, personalized, inclusive and, crucially, highly measurable.
Key takeaways
- QUX is a paradigm of overlapping, multiform, multidimensional experiences; amorphous and fluid.
- XCI generalizes HCI: the X is any actor (human, animal, mechanical, cybernetic), even clusters.
- The three components are UX Quanta (UXQ), Quantum UX Energy (QUXE) and Experience Elements (XEl).
- An XEl can appear differently for each person, channel or dimension; an inert XEl signals something is wrong.
- QUX is data-driven and generative, ideally starting from the user and interpolating data.
XCI: beyond the 'human' in HCI
XCI extends HCI (Human-Computer Interaction) by replacing the rigid concept of ‘human’ with X: any actor that interacts with a system, human, animal, mechanical or cybernetic, and even clusters of actors with multiple roles. It keeps HCI’s proven precepts but makes them elastic, so research results stop being forced into a paradigm too small to hold them.
The three components of QUX
| Component | What it is | Role |
|---|---|---|
| UX Quanta (UXQ) | Not a single element but a probabilistic set of processes in an excited (higher-energy) state. Closer to multivariate testing than A/B testing. | Multidimensionality |
| Quantum UX Energy (QUXE) | The information flows (from users, stakeholders, scripts, ads) that set a static system in motion. A page launches at energy 0 and charges up as data arrives. | The 'Q' in UX |
| Experience Elements (XEl) | Elastic, multidimensional building blocks. Unlike Atomic or Material Design, an XEl is not static and can appear in many forms at once. A transmitter, receiver, container and analyzer of real-time info. | The skeleton |
The same XEl might show one person a CTA button, another a form, another a slogan, and a visually impaired user a rich aural experience. It can jump from the web to a physical DOOH screen, to a personalized TV ad, to a smart-home entity checking the fridge. An XEl with no energy is inert (a sign something is wrong); one that receives energy but underperforms is ‘sick’ (likely a bug or a changed variable).
What Quantum UX is, and is not
| Quantum UX IS | Quantum UX is NOT (necessarily) |
|---|---|
| Quantum (metaphor), multiform, multidimensional | Rigid |
| Amorphous, structure on demand | Linear |
| Inclusive (all entities, cultures, abilities) | Random (though random experiments can exist) |
| Personalized and generative | Infinite (experiences are endless, processes are time-bound) |
| Highly measurable and sensorial | Strictly technological (AI-heavy, but user need not consciously use tech) |
The process: start from the user, interpolate data
Ideally a QUX process starts with the user and derives the product by interpolating data (you can infer a need without the solution existing yet, as the pandemic created new needs). Until big data and ML are ubiquitous, a simple process works: write the idea and goals as hypotheses, then analyze the User Data Dimension and the General Data Dimension, then the UX Development phase (Discovery, Concept Design, and Data Ideation, where ‘ideation’ means manipulating data to create self-generating experiences without endless iteration). See a concrete QUX experiment using AI.
A UX paradigm based on overlapping, multiform and multidimensional experiences. It is fluid and amorphous rather than rigid, and it is generative and highly data-driven.
An extension of HCI where X is any actor (human, animal, mechanical or cybernetic), including clusters, keeping HCI’s precepts but making them elastic.
UX Quanta (probabilistic sets of processes), Quantum UX Energy (the information flows that animate a system) and Experience Elements (elastic, multidimensional building blocks).
No. QUX is data-driven and uses high-level tech like AI, but the user does not have to consciously interact with technology, and a simple, low-tech process exists.
Yes, more so than typical UX. Its experiences are generated by crisscrossing data, which makes measurement central rather than optional.
Curious how Quantum UX applies to your product? Talk to Dorve.
Start a project