Mortensen Steagall, Marcos2026-01-062026-01-062025-12-19Revista Transverso, ISSN: 2236-4129 (Print), Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais (UEMG), I(18), 127-142.2236-4129http://hdl.handle.net/10292/20443This article investigates how communication design students develop critical awareness when integrating artificial intelligence (AI) tools into their creative processes. Based on three years of ethnographic observation (2022- 2024) in a final-year undergraduate design studio in New Zealand, the study documents pedagogical approaches that position AI as a situated tool within broader design practices. Objective: to demonstrate that systematic reflective practices enable emerging designers to maintain creative agency and cultural sensitivity when working with AI technologies. Methodology: action research with 87 students through structured workshops, process documentation, and longitudinal comparative analysis. Results: students participating in reflective workshops demonstrated significantly greater capacity (85% versus 41%) to recognise when AI suggestions diverged from culturally informed intentions, particularly within a bicultural educational context informed by Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori epistemologies.Copyright (c) 2025 Revista Transverso. Creative Commons License. Este trabalho está licenciado sob uma licença Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/330316 Visual communication design (incl. graphic design)3303 DesignJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.36704/transverso.v1i18.10399