AI and Automotive Design: The Ferrari Case as a Model of Human–Machine Co-Creation

This paper examines how Ferrari integrates artificial intelligence (AI) into its design workflow while preserving the emotional, artisanal and identity-defining qualities of the brand. As automotive design is increasingly shaped by the interaction between human intuition and computational systems, Ferrari offers a paradigmatic context for analysing the negotiation between tradition and technological innovation. Through a qualitative investigation of design practices at the Ferrari Design Center, complemented by insights from an interview with Chief Design Officer Flavio Manzoni, the research frames AI as a form of cognitive augmentation rather than a substitute for creativity. AI tools expand designers’ perceptual and speculative capacities by generating complex scenarios, correlations and formal variations, which are subsequently interpreted and curated through cultural, sensory and emotional criteria. The study conceptualises human–machine interaction as a heuristic dialogue in which designers actively guide, select and reinterpret algorithmic outputs to ensure coherence with Ferrari’s design language. Building on principles of cognitive ergonomics and explainability, the paper proposes a conceptual framework for structuring and evaluating human–AI collaboration in industrial design. Ferrari thus emerges as an exemplary model of collaborative intelligence, demonstrating how AI can enhance exploration and decision-making while maintaining the primacy of human judgement and aesthetic intentionality.