A vision prototype, sometimes called a concept video or experience prototype, is a high-fidelity communication artefact that demonstrates what a future product or service could feel like, even before the technology to build it exists. It is not a functional prototype: it is a carefully produced fiction that communicates a design vision with enough realism to generate meaningful stakeholder and user reactions. Vision prototypes are particularly powerful for securing organisational commitment to a design direction that is too ambitious to demonstrate through conventional prototyping.
Vision Prototype
A compelling fiction that communicates a design direction before it can be built
A
Designers Academy
7 October 2025 · 4 min read
DesignMethods
In brief
A vision prototype is a high-fidelity communication artefact, such as a video, that demonstrates what a future product or service could feel like to secure organisational commitment and user reactions before it's built.
