
When a newsletter has no image, what do you display?
While designing Pouch, I evaluated three options:
1. AI-generated image, technically not viable at scale. It would require reading, summarizing, and generating a banner consistent with each newsletter's brand. Massive cost, marginal benefit.
2. Category-based visual, too generic, loses each sender's identity.
3. Sender logo + initials/unique color fallback, fast, recognizable, scalable.
I went with option 3. Familiar pattern, zero server cost, the user identifies their newsletter in a fraction of a second.


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