Are Rovo Features Being Designed to Drive Consumption? [Champions Slack Insider]

[#1]

A Champions Slack discussion started when @Ciara Twomey Nielsen noticed something unexpected while trying to create a new page.

Instead of getting a blank page option, she was presented with a "Create with Rovo" experience. At first glance, this looked like a minor user interface change but it raised a bigger question:

When AI usage is tied to credits, quotas, or future overage costs, should core workflows be redesigned to encourage more AI usage?

What Triggered the Concern?

The concern wasn't that AI-assisted page creation existed. Most people in the discussion actively use Rovo. The concern was that creating a blank page—a fundamental Confluence workflow—appeared to be routing users through an AI experience first. Several Champions questioned whether users should have to:

• Dismiss an AI overlay
• Navigate additional clicks
• Enter an AI-assisted workflow

just to create a standard blank page.  The concern was the placement of AI and the potential implications.

Why This Matters More Than It Seems

Under most software models, changing a workflow is primarily a usability decision. AI changes the equation. Many AI products now include:

• Usage quotas
• Credit consumption
• Tiered limits
• Consumption-based pricing

That means interface decisions can directly influence spending behavior. If a workflow encourages users to invoke AI more often, usage naturally increases. Whether intentional or not, administrators eventually have to account for that usage.

The Enterprise Concern

Several Champions raised a concern that many administrators are quietly wrestling with. Organizations are being asked to:

• Promote AI adoption
• Train users
• Encourage experimentation

while simultaneously trying to understand:

• Future costs
• Consumption patterns
• Governance controls
• Budget implications

The challenge becomes harder when administrators don't yet have mature tools to forecast, govern, or limit AI consumption. In that environment, even small workflow changes can attract attention.

This Isn't Just About Atlassian

Every major AI platform faces the same temptation. Product teams naturally want:

• Greater adoption
• More engagement
• More usage

The easiest way to increase usage is often not a better model. It's changing the workflow. Move AI closer to users. Make it more visible. Make it the default. Reduce the friction required to invoke it.

Those decisions can increase adoption dramatically.

Champion Takeaway

When a new button increases usage of a free feature, few people care. When a new button increases usage of a metered feature, administrators tend to pay much closer attention. That's where governance, budgeting, and product design begin to intersect.

In the age of consumption-based AI, user experience design isn't just a usability decision anymore. It can become a budget decision as well.

Please Note: The UX discussed in this article was distributed in a limited release and may or may not ever appear in your environment. It was used to illustrate a growing AI interface design trend and discuss questions user should consider. 

[Charlie Misonne]

I'm not a fan of this either. But it seems to be a trend.

The usage of AI is being encouraged for everything and nothing in companies. I should almost feel ashamed not to use AI to review my own emails.

Do we need AI results when performing a Google search? To answer questions on the Community? To create Confluence pages?
I'm skeptical and I do hope this trend will stabilize at some point. Keeping it for tasks where it shows significant improvements.

About pushing users to consume Rovo credits:
I agree with you: an option to create a blank page should be easy to reach. If it's a beta release there will be room for feedback and improvements.