Abstract: Regardless of whether we approach Generative AI (GenAI) with apprehension or enthusiasm, the fact remains that AI has already made its way into many aspects of personal and professional life—including the field of communication design and, by extension, the education of future designers. While there is currently no consensus on how to incorporate GenAI into design education, the technical development within AI is happening faster than most of us can keep up with, and the ways in which we can utilise AI are becoming more varied by the day. Considering that the integration of AI in design will only increase in the coming years, it is essential to build strategies for preparing our students for their future careers. This paper presents a joint project conducted in autumn 2025 by two universities in Sweden and Australia that tasked students with creating posters representing an unfamiliar city using only AI‑generated imagery. Through reflective writing, discussions, and analysis of their visual outcomes, the study examines how students negotiated both the opportunities and obstacles posed by GenAI. The project is framed against current literature on GenAI in design and education and seeks to contribute to the ongoing discourse on how design education can adapt to emerging technologies while maintaining critical and creative integrity. Findings show that while students valued GenAI’s capacity for rapid ideation, they also encountered issues such as factual inaccuracy, stylistic inconsistency, and cultural bias. These challenges underscored the importance of maintaining strong foundational design skills, as well as developing students’ critical awareness of the ethical, cultural, and semiotic implications of AI‑generated imagery. The study contributes insights into how communication design education might meaningfully integrate GenAI while sustaining critical and creative integrity.