Originally published on Forbes.

What happens to the art of designing a car when artificial intelligence can generate hundreds of convincing shapes before a human designer finishes a sketch? That question hung over an unusual meeting at the Italian Embassy in Tokyo on October 28.

Ferrari and Okuyama talk about design and AI

On one side of the stage was Enzo Mattioli Ferrari, great-grandson of Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari and CEO of Ferrari Family Investments. On the other was Ken Okuyama, the Japanese designer responsible for creating the Ferrari Enzo and who served as Pininfarina’s design director. Their discussion, part of the embassy’s Italian Innovation Days series and co-organized with Nikkei, explored technology, automotive design and the culture of innovation in the age of AI.

There is an irony in their pairing. Mattioli Ferrari carries the name of the man whose company gave the Enzo supercar its name. Okuyama helped give that car its shape. One represents the stewardship of a legacy; the other has faced the designer’s harder task of making a legacy memorable in metal.

On the night, their conversation ranged from Italy’s Motor Valley—a region in northern Italy where supercar makers like Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and Pagani are located—and Japanese manufacturing traditions to electrification, automation and AI. Electric powertrains change a car’s proportions and character. And few know that better than Okuyama. AI is speeding up the search for ideas and can create dozens of different designs in minutes. Yet a luxury or performance car still needs a reason for its particular shape, sound and feel.

Okuyama’s career makes him a compelling person to examine that tension. He worked at General Motors and Porsche before becoming design director at Pininfarina, and his credits include the Ferrari Enzo and Maserati Quattroporte. The Enzo is a reminder that memorable automotive design rarely comes from making a car agreeable to everyone. Its dramatic proportions and motorsport-inspired details, like its 650-hp 6.0-liter V12 engine, made a forceful statement about what Ferrari was at that moment, when the car was launched in 2002.

Mattioli Ferrari approached the Italy–Japan connection through the idea of a recognizable Italian creative spirit. In an earlier interview with Italy’s leading news agency ANSA associated with the event, he argued that Ferrari designs share a thread across different engines and eras. He also described luxury as an experience rooted in passion and craftsmanship, and spoke warmly of Italian traditions being interpreted through Japanese materials and culture.

A design must still persuade a person to feel attachment

That distinction points to the most interesting business question raised by the evening. If software can produce attractive forms quickly, what will customers pay a premium for? The collective answer from the two speakers was judgment: the decision to reject a plausible design, pursue a difficult detail, or preserve a brand’s character when a faster solution is available. AI may help a team explore possibilities, but the finished car must still persuade a person to feel attachment or care about its street presence.