How to spot a site AI made on its own.
Left on its own, AI builds the same decent-looking site every time. These are the 24 defaults we see most, why each one costs you, and what to do instead. Updated October 2026.
One tell is a choice. Five is a default.
Any of these can be a real decision. A gradient can be on brand; a centered page can be right for one message. The trouble starts when they arrive together, because then nobody chose them.
The tells also change. Each model generation has its own habits: the first wave of AI sites had purple gradients and glowing blobs, and newer ones lean on bento grids, frosted glass and a label over every heading. We date this guide and update it as the defaults move.
Type that reads like a template.
Gradient headlines
A purple-to-blue fade on the biggest words. It looks expensive, reads worse, and says nothing about you.
Solid type that says what you do.
The same safe font
Inter, or the system font, for every heading, line and button. It is never wrong, so it never says anything about the brand.
A face picked for the brand, at a few clear sizes.
A label over every heading
A tiny all-caps word in the accent color above each heading: FEATURES, PRICING, SOLUTIONS. It repeats the heading and makes every section look like a slot in a template.
A heading that does the job on its own.
Emoji as bullets
A rocket, a padlock and a sparkle in front of every point. It reads like a chat reply pasted onto a page.
Plain points that make sense without a picture.
Color nobody chose.
Purple into blue
Violet fading into blue behind everything. It became the color of AI launches, so now it reads as generated.
Colors from your brand, and one accent with a job.
Glowing blobs
A blurry orb of color where the product should be.
Show the real thing.
Frosted glass
See-through panels over a blurred background. Pretty in a screenshot, hard to read on a real screen.
Solid surfaces with clear text.
The accent on everything
Links, icons, a word in the heading and both buttons in the same bright color. Nothing stands out, so nobody knows what to click.
Save the accent for the one thing you want clicked.
Layouts that fit any product.
Three identical icon cards
“Fast,” “Secure,” “Scalable,” each with an icon. Every site has them, so they prove nothing.
One specific thing, shown.
Everything centered
Every line in the middle and one button whose arrow wiggles. Nothing leads the eye.
A clear first and second choice.
The bento grid
Rounded tiles in mixed sizes, each an icon and two words. It looks organized and holds nothing.
Let the content set the layout: the main thing big, the rest around it.
Same section, new color
A heading, a line and three cards. Then the same again on a tinted background, and again. Nothing builds, so nobody keeps scrolling.
Compose each section for what it has to say.
Motion with no reason.
Everything fades up
Every block fades and rises as you scroll, the first screen too. Visitors wait to read, and a quick scroll shows empty space.
Content that is there when the page loads.
The wiggling arrow
“Get started” with an arrow that nudges on hover. The same button is on every AI site, and it never says what starts.
A button that names the action.
Pulses that never stop
Dots, rings and badges that pulse forever. Motion with no cause pulls the eye away from what you want read.
Move only when something happens.
A headline that types itself
The main sentence types out letter by letter, or cycles through words. Visitors wait for the one line that matters.
The whole sentence, there at once.
Copy with nothing to say.
Copy that fits anyone
“Unlock the power of seamless innovation.” Swap the logo and it still works, which is the problem.
Words only you could say.
Sparkle badges
“AI-powered” in a glowing pill above the headline. Visitors care what it does, not how.
Lead with the outcome instead.
Three-word slogans
“Build. Ship. Scale.” Short, punchy and empty: three verbs any company could claim.
One plain sentence about what you do, and for whom.
Invented praise
Five stars from “Sarah J., CEO” next to a stock face. Visitors spot it, and then they doubt everything else.
Real quotes with full names, or none yet.
Pictures of nothing in particular.
The made-up dashboard
Charts going up and a “+24%” that is not your product. It promises software you do not have.
Your real screen, cropped to the part that matters.
The empty phone
A phone floating at an angle on a gradient, its screen a blur or a few gray bars. It says there is nothing to show yet.
The real app on the screen, straight on.
Logos nobody knows
“Trusted by” and a row of made-up marks. People recognize placeholder logos, and fake proof makes real claims look fake too.
Name real customers, or leave the row out.
Icons in gradient tiles
A line icon in a glossy gradient square for every feature. They all look alike, so they explain nothing.
A small crop of the real feature instead.
Counted five or more on your own site?
Get yours checkedNot slop. Just broken.
What are you
building?
Tell us in your own words. A real person reads it and gets back to you about a call.