W
What is the problem?
What is frustrating, slow, confusing, risky, or not working right now?
Framework · Human Needs · Better Systems
WANTS Framework
WANTS is my framework for turning frustration into a clearer product, research, or design decision. It starts with what people actually need, then moves toward a testable definition of success.
The Framework
Five questions that keep a solution human.
WANTS is simple on purpose. Each step forces the work to stay connected to the user, the aim, the real need, the test, and the outcome that would prove the solution actually helped.
WFind the actual problem.
ASet the aim for the solution.
NName the human needs.
TTry and test a smaller version.
SDefine what success proves.
A
Aim
What should the solution help people do, feel, understand, or decide?
N
Needs
What do users need in the moment: clarity, control, confidence, speed, safety, or trust?
T
Trial & Testing
What small version can be tested before the idea becomes expensive, risky, or permanent?
S
Success
What would prove the solution worked in real behavior, not just in a presentation?
How I Use It
WANTS is a product lens and a responsibility lens.
For products
It keeps AERI and other projects grounded in human decisions instead of adding features just because they are technically possible.
For AI systems
It makes hidden assumptions visible: the goal, the human need, the boundary, the test, and the accountability standard.