Here's what we looked at this week:

No, airlines are not installing these stand-up saddle-style seats. A design exercise has been turned into misinformation.

Obsessive UX design detail: Sugatsune's Slide Hook is a bag hook that retracts.

The Great Fredini figures out how to centrifugally mold glass.

Solstice 2.0, a kinetic clock by Animaro Design Studio.

Mobile shopping cart cleaning solutions from different countries. Unsurprisingly, the Dutch one is the craziest.

Saudi Arabia's Shebara Resort, a net-zero facility with stainless steel pod villas.

China moved an entire historical building complex using walking robots.

When EDC objects are actually designed by industrial designers.

The Acemate is a smart design for a robotic tennis partner.

The Nuki, a popular European smart lock, comes to America.

The Float Buddy, an emergency inflatable buoy for smartphones.

Industrial design firm Intenxiv created this Spinamic, a revolutionary scoliosis correction device.

Design lessons: How exploiting three materials made greenhouses affordable.

The ChompSaw: A benchtop power tool that's safe for kids to use.

Furniture design case study: Teknion on making the main conference table for the G7 Summit.

The G7 Summit is a big deal, and needed a big deal of a conference table. The Canadian government, this year's host, turned to Toronto-based furniture brand Teknion to create the flagship table for the conference's primary Outreach room.

Initial Table ConceptCommissioned by the Canadian government, the initial design for a table featured a large single base and a Starburst veneer pattern. The base was later changed from one large base to two, which significantly improved the aesthetic.

Reconfigurable Table DesignThe table was developed to have eight sections, each with a supporting top and base, allowing for adjustable sizing. The table also includes a removable platform on top, with fully finished veneer underneath and matched veneer data ports.

Table's Purpose, Reconfigurability and Location

While the reconfigurable table was designed for the Outreach room at the G7 summit, the ask was for it to be able to be broken down into a few smaller sizes and relocated to Ottawa for Prime Minister Mark Carney's use outside of the summit. Teknion went beyond the ask and gave many more possible variations due to the 8 sections. The two curved end pieces can also be detached from the segments and made into a much smaller circular table.

Veneer Sourcing ChallengeFinding a Canadian oak log for the veneer proved difficult, as maple is more common, but the client, the Summit Management Team, desired oak for its character, origin, and beauty.

Red Oak is much more common in Canada, and traditionally, for projects like this, Teknion's Solutions team prefers to use veneer sourced from one tree. In this instance, due to the size of the table, the team used 2 logs of the Canadian White Oak they were able to source from Southwestern Ontario in the Algonquin Park region, which they were able to stain and match seamlessly with careful planning.

Starburst Veneer ProcessThe creation of the Starburst veneer pattern involved careful layout and pressing, an intricate and risky process with high potential for mistakes during pressing.

Oak Stitching QualityThe finishing shop achieved exceptional stitching on the oak veneer, avoiding the need for significant fill, which was a concern given the challenging nature of working with oak in a Starburst pattern.

Electrical Accessibility Design

The table was intentionally designed without pre-installed power and data to accommodate current and future technologies, emphasizing the universal and agnostic nature of the table's infrastructure.

Power Data Port DesignThe power and data ports were designed with matched veneer and a lift-off mechanism for access, maintaining the table's aesthetic appeal in both configurations with and without the top plinth.

Plinth FunctionalityThe platform or plinth on top of the table is primarily an aesthetic option to conceal cords from technology, rather than housing any tech itself in anticipation of a variety of tech options potentially being used within the table for the summit and after.

"Magic Wand" StoryThe Summit Management Team had a literal 'magic wand' and swore by it as a symbol providing them good luck for the different elements of the project they came across. They credited some of the magic of the wand to finding the hard-to-come-by Canadian log for the table, leading to a shop member making a similar wand for Susan Hahn, General Manager of the Teknion Solutions team.

Congratulations to Teknion. That's one hell of a commission!

Of all freestanding power tools, perhaps the jigsaw or scrollsaw would be the most fun for kids to use, as they allow freeform cuts. They're also pretty darn dangerous, with the jigsaw being powerful enough to remove fingers.

A much safer way to introduce kids to power tools is this ChompSaw, developed by product designers Kausi Raman and Max Liechty. The material it's designed to cut is cardboard, allowing parents to turn Amazon boxes into projects.

The tool is essentially a nibbler, using an oscillating cutter that's safely tucked beneath a puck-like protrusion, completely preventing finger contact.

The nibblings are collected in a bin below, allowing you to recycle the waste.

The ChompSaw runs $250.

Greenhouses are an excellent way to grow food in a controlled environment. By regulating environmental factors and blocking out pests, vegetable yields are increased significantly. But traditional greenhouses, made with rigid materials and glass, are expensive. You can expect to spend tens of thousands on greenhouses like these:

In the 1960s, polyethylene film in wide sheets became available. This set off a revolution in greenhouse design—particularly in the area of cost.

An unknown inventor figured out it was way cheaper to use inexpensive and easily bendable tubing, like PVC pipe, to build a skeletal Quonset hut. This could then be wrapped in the polyethylene film.

Compared to glass, polyethylene film is cheaper up front, easier to install, and cheaper to replace. These two innovations—the film and the "hoop house" design—made greenhouses affordable for the masses.

Not all hoop houses were made with PVC, with some preferring metal conduit. But the design is the same, regardless of the tubing type: Bent tubing for a row of hoops, and straight tubing run longitudinally to serve as purlins. This ingenious shape is sturdy, offers a measure of wind resistance and is highly economical.

The next issue that saw refinement was the connection method between the hoops and the purlins. The earliest builders simply drilled holes through both, and connected them with a carriage bolt. This proved to be laborious, requiring skilled accuracy to drill the holes. It was also cumbersome, in an era when drills still needed to be plugged into something.

Crafty builders turned to plumbing supply stores to use pipe clamps instead. These eventually morphed into purpose-designed cross connectors like these:

Those were an improvement over the drill-and-carriage-bolt method; if you made a mistake in placement, you could simply slide the connector to the correct location and re-tighten it. But there was room for improvement yet, as these connectors required the installer to use tools.

That improvement came in the form of these wire hoop-to-purlin connectors. They're pure form-follows-function, can be slid around easily for positioning, and can be installed without the use of tools. They're also cheap as chips.

These examples of the exploitation of material properties—for the polyethylene film, the PVC tubing and the wire clips—ought be taught to all industrial design students. These innovations reduced cost, increased access, eased installation, and used less material than earlier solutions. Design at its finest.

This Spinamic is a scoliosis correction device by South Korean industrial design firm Intenxiv.

Designed for client VNTC, a South Korean medical technology company, Spinamic is soft rather than rigid, which brings several benefits. First off, it's adjustable. This allows doctors to tailor the pressure—which can literally be dialed in--to accommodate the patient's specific body and variant of scoliosis. "The compression intensity adjustment dial is an effective design that allows for fine-tuning," Intenxiv writes.

Also, 44% of people diagnosed with scoliosis are teenagers—meaning their bodies are still growing. Spinamic's adjustable design allows the brace to grow along with them. "By gathering data on growth factors and spinal conditions as well as x-ray images," explains VNTC, "hospitals and parents can check the patient's treatment progress" and make adjustments as necessary.

Secondly, the quick-drying mesh that Spinamic is made from is far more comfortable and breathable than a traditional thermoplastic brace. It can also be thrown into a washing machine, unlike plastic designs.

Thirdly, it's a lot quicker to manufacture. "A conventional rigid brace takes more than two weeks to manufacture," VNTC points out, while "Spinamic can be immediately customized and delivered based on clinical X-ray data."

Spinamic is currently available in South Korea. While VNTC has expressed the intention to distribute internationally, at press time it was not available for sale in the U.S.

Designed in Austria, this stainless steel device is the Nuki Smart Lock. Since the company's formation a decade ago, they've shipped over 800,000 units—in Europe. Today the company is finally entering the U.S. market.

The company says it can be easily retrofitted without needing to drill anything. Once installed, you can unlock your door via smartphone app—hands-free; the company's app detects your proximity to the lock via Bluetooth and pops it as you approach. An internal brushless motor unlocks in 1.5 seconds, which sounds slow to me, but the company says it's faster than competing products.

Potenial UX hassle: The lock is powered by an internal lithium polymer batter, and while it will hold a charge for months (according to the company), you will need to periodically charge it. On the bottom of the knob is a little magnetic connection point that you attached the charging cable to. It takes two hours to top it up.

The Nuki Smart Lock runs $160, and should be available on Amazon by the time you read this.

In the '90s I visited a younger cousin in South Korea. Military service is mandatory there, and he was enlisted in the Navy. He had the craziest haircut I'd ever seen—completely shaved around the side, but with absurdly long bangs, like a front-mounted topknot. I asked him what that was about, and was stunned at the answer: "They can use it to pull you out of the water."

I found that crazy—and creative. A brutal piece of UX, essentially adding a design feature to sailors.

A company called Float Buddy does something similar for smartphones. Their eponymous product, designed for Boat Life people with butterfingers, is a clunky-looking device that attaches to your phone via a mounting disc that you permanently adhere to your phone's case.

If you drop your phone into the drink, a water-sensitive trigger inflates a red buoy, allowing you to locate and grab it.

Downside: The $60 device is, like an airbag, single-use.

Recently an Instagram post featuring these images went viral. The post falsely claimed that budget airlines would begin installing these saddle-style seats, which more or less place the passenger in a standing position, in an effort to cram more passengers in.

An online backlash formed, which is of course the point of releasing false information on the internet: Rile people up, steal eyeballs. But the truth is, these SkyRider seats are a concept from over a decade ago, have not been approved by regulatory bodies, are not in production, and no airline has ordered any.

The concept is by Italy's Aviointeriors, who recently released the following statement:

"The Skyrider, often mistaken for a finalized airline seat ready for takeoff, is in fact a conceptual prototype dating back to 2012. Designed as a bold response to one of the aviation industry's most pressing challenges, while maximizing space and ergonomics it was never meant to be taken at face value. Rather, it was a provocative exercise in design innovation, challenging the limits of what air travel might one day look like."Aviointeriors is well aware of today's market demands, bringing together quality, comfort, and the unmistakable touch of Made in Italy in every product it creates. For now, the Skyrider is not part of the official lineup."

The company then seems to hedge their bets:

"But who knows what the future of aviation may hold?"

In other words, We know these aren't cool...uh, unless you guys think they're cool?

I personally find the backlash ridiculous. Admittedly I'm biased; I have a bad back and would actually prefer to stand on short-haul flights. Also, if these do become a reality, it will likely be within a couple of budget rows at the back of the plane; if you don't like the seats, all you have to do is buy a ticket for a regular seat.

Anyways, here we have an odd case of a design concept going viral for the wrong reasons.

Here's an example of solving a complex problem by synthesizing existing technologies in a novel way.

A Chinese inventor known only as Mr. Feng wanted to create a robot that could persistently return tennis volleys, allowing him to practice his sport without needing to line up a human partner. While humanoid robots have made sharp advances in China, none are up to the complicated task of playing tennis.

What Feng realized is that you don't need a humanoid robot; you just need a robot that can simulate the inputs and outputs of a human partner. He subsequently created this Acemate Tennis Robot, a rolling box that can track struck balls using a pair of cameras, and reach them anywhere on the court thanks to mecanum wheels.

It catches the balls within its net, then fires a new ball back towards the player. By dialing in the timing of when it catches a ball and when it fires one, the effect is as if you're playing with a human.

It's an understatement to say backers went wild for the idea. The Acemate has been successfully Kickstarted with over $2.1 million in pledges at press time, with 4 days left to pledge.

Most EDC stuff looks and feels like it was designed by an engineer or machinist. In contrast these objects by the James Brand, which was notably founded by an industrial designer (Ryan Coulter), were clearly created by folks with ID backgrounds.

The anodized aluminum Warrick as a bit-holding screwdriver. Its sleek shape was designed both to slide into a coin pocket and to provide leverage. And the included bits aren't throwaway filler; those are Wiha bits.

The Mehlville is a two-compartment carabiner. They're milled out of single blocks of aluminum or titanium and feature stainless steel fittings.

The Palmer is a simple, minimalist aluminum utility knife. There's a hole for a lanyard and, like the Warrick, it will also fit into a coin pocket.

The Palmer's elegantly-designed blade changing process is particularly brilliant, and features a patented mechanism. Here's how it works:

I'm not much of an EDC guy, but all of these caught my eye. You can really tell when an industrial designer or team has spent a lot of time sweating every radii, chamfer and transition. And while it might seem like a small detail, the UX of the blade changes on the Palmer reminds me of the good that can come when industrial designers give a damn.

During this year's ICFF in New York, over 30 students from seven international design schools came together for the 2025 WantedDesign Schools Workshop, a collaborative, high-energy design sprint centered on one of today's most universal and urgent issues: food systems. The workshop, titled "Eating in NYC: Reconnecting and Redesigning Food Systems", was led by the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and supported by Haworth, Core77, and molo.

In a dedicated studio space furnished by Haworth and molo on the ICFF show floor, students were tasked with imagining innovative, systems-based interventions that could reshape how New Yorkers grow, access, prepare, and share food.

Participants are given the brief at SVA Products of Design Studio.

The participants—representing CCA, CENTRO, Escuela Mónica Herrera, Ohio State University, RISD, Pratt Institute, and SVA—were divided into cross-disciplinary teams and given just four days to research, ideate, and prototype bold design proposals. Their final concepts were presented on May 20, 2025 during ICFF to a jury of industry leaders, including Allan Chochinov (SVA, Core77), Nicolai Czumaj-Bront (Haworth), Kristine Mudd (SVA) , Jane Nakagawa (Honda Design LA), and Stephanie Forsythe (molo).

The Jury Team confers: Nicolai Czumaj-Bront (Haworth), Stephanie Forsythe (molo), Jane Nakagawa (Honda Design LA), Kristine Mudd (SVA), and Allan Chochinov (SVA, Core77) Image: ICFF Jenna Bascom Photography.

"Food systems were an ideal subject for an intensive design sprint like this," said Erica Pernice, one of the RISD faculty leading the workshop. "The universality of food jumpstarted the students' ability to connect to the subject matter and to each other." Pernice emphasized how the shared familiarity with food allowed teams to quickly find common ground, despite coming from different countries, schools, and disciplines.

Fellow RISD faculty member Charlie Cannon noted that food provided a natural entry point into systems thinking: "Everyone encounters multiple parts of the food system every day. That gave students a meaningful and accessible way to understand the broader implications of their design decisions."

The diversity of the participants proved to be one of the workshop's biggest strengths. "We had students from industrial design, strategic design, graphic design and communications, and architecture," Cannon said. "This meant that every team could think through their design proposals at different scales and registers."

Being hosted on-site at ICFF added a unique layer of inspiration and exposure. "Students could wander the halls and get a fresh perspective from the global design community," Cannon added. "We also had drop-in visitors who were curious to engage with the teams and their projects."

Ultimately, the workshop challenged students not only to design within tight constraints, but also to collaborate deeply and meaningfully. "Successful collaborations were careful to include everyone's perspectives and skills," said Cannon, "and identify an unusual opportunity that they could all rally around."

By zooming in on food systems and rooting their ideas in real-world NYC contexts, the teams delivered thoughtful, place-based proposals that explored how design could intervene at every scale—from the personal to the systemic. As Pernice put it, "We found the most successful projects focused on New York-specific sites, leveraging existing programs for depth and believability."

Allan Chochinov, Founding Chair of MFA Products of Design program at SVA and co-founder of Core 77 was again leading the Jury review and was enthusiastic about this years workshop. "I love being part of this student workshop every year. I think it's the 12th year, and this years' team was near and dear to my heart: food and food systems, and food sustainability. The projects were quite pragmatic, but also adventurous, some even visionary. The students had a great time. It was really clear that they were working well in groups and hopefully making friends for life. The idea of mixing students from schools from all over the world into teams that are all blended is just genius."

The cohort from WantedDesign Schools Workshop. Image: ICFF Jenna Bascom Photography.

The winning team whose project was titled Re-Compost was comprised of: Florence Grace-Castonguay from Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), Rida Zeng from School of Visual Arts, Gabriela Mestriner from Pratt Institute, Sebastian Arce from Escuela Monica Herrera, and Gabriela Mierkalne from California College of the Arts whose team re-imagined New York's composting system to make it truly circular. You can view the winning team, Re_Compost's presentation here.

"I really appreciated how well they worked together, despite coming from different backgrounds. Everything felt cohesive and on the same level. The team clearly understood how to collaborate effectively. I also liked how they presented very practical, thoughtful solutions — and again, everything was very well balanced within the team," commented Nicolai Czumaj-Bront, Senior Principal Designer at Haworth, who was part of the Jury.

The Re-Compost (Winning) Team 

Florence Grace-Castonguay - Rhode Island School of Design I'm originally from Montreal, Canada, and I'm currently completing my Master's in Industrial Design at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).

The most rewarding part of the Wanted Schools Workshop at ICFF was the opportunity to meet and collaborate with students from various schools and nationalities who shared a common interest in food systems. Throughout the workshop, professors and professionals shared their experiences working across different scales of food-related design. This broadened my awareness of the range of possible interventions and it was inspiring to connect with others who were equally passionate about the topic.

Before returning to design, I studied and worked in pastry, which continues to influence my design approach, using food both as a material and a subject. I believe food, because of its universal and experiential nature, has a unique ability to bring people together and spark conversations about broader issues such as sustainability, equity, and accessibility.

Our success stemmed from a strong sense of collaboration. Each member brought a different background and perspective, allowing us to contribute in complementary ways. We were also deeply engaged with the workshop brief and believed strongly in the positive impact of our proposal, which helped unify and motivate us throughout the process.

I see my future in design working within interdisciplinary teams, where collaboration across different fields allows for interventions at multiple scales. My dream career would allow me to explore meaningful, socially engaged design—particularly in areas that intersect with food, community, and sustainability.

The best way to follow my creative journey is on my Instagram account.

Rida Zeng - School of Visual Arts

I'm originally from Chongqing, China, and completed my BA in Classical Studies at the University of Chicago. I'm currently pursuing an MFA in Products of Design at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Working alongside peers from such varied backgrounds and watching our idea evolve in just a few days was incredibly rewarding. (It's also my first time working on a systemic intervention of this scale in a team setting and joining a design workshop.) We really tapped into our shared interests, cross-checked one another's ideas, and joined our individual expertise. Seeing that collaborative energy incubate a concept from zero all the way to a prototype was very powerful.

This year's theme (NYC's food systems) highlighted a rich overlap between urban systems and communal bonding. From my humanities background, I've long read food as a vessel of memory, identity, and metaphor; through design, I now also see it as a complex system of people, processes, and places. The workshop helped me bridge these lenses and inspired me to continue uncovering real-world relevance in classical inquiry while using design to nurture human connections.

Our team success resulted from various components including: Team spirit: We paused after each discussion to realign our vision and deliverables, which kept us focused, distilled a ton of information into a clear narrative, and paced our days.

Complementary skills: Each of us brought different strengths, enabling fast research, brainstorming, prototyping, and storytelling under tight time constraints.

Rigorous research: Grounding our work in the realities of NYC's food ecosystem prevented us from reinventing the wheel and allowed us to leverage existing resources effectively.

I strive to be a strategist driving impact through research and design at growth-stage businesses. Leveraging systems thinking alongside emerging technologies, I aim to develop products, services, and experiences that inspire people to imagine - and live in - a better reality.

You can explore my work at ridazeng.com and connect with me LinkedIn. I also share work on Instagram.

Gabriela Mestriner - Pratt Institute

I was born and raised in Brazil, in a cultural landscape that continues to inform my approach to design. My perspective has been shaped by diverse experiences in my home country —particularly in Bahia and through long-standing relationships with Indigenous communities in Xingu. These influences continue to guide my work, both in its values and creative direction. I received my degree in Architecture and Urban Planning from Mackenzie University in São Paulo in 2016, the same year I co-founded Flipê Arquitetura — a studio focused on architecture and interior design through a collaborative lens. I ran Flipê until 2024, when I relocated to New York to pursue postgraduate studies in Industrial Design at Pratt Institute. Alongside my academic work, I've been developing a research-driven practice that moves across disciplines, grounded in material experimentation and shaped by questions of cultural memory, sustainability, and shared knowledge systems.

The most rewarding aspect of this workshop was seeing how different aspects of my practice could come together so fluidly — from design and architecture to systems thinking and collaboration. The workshop offered a space to work across scales, connecting material experimentation with larger urban and ecological systems. The final presentation and jury feedback were especially meaningful. Their insights were sharp, generous, and motivating, giving me even more drive to continue developing ideas that respond to real contemporary needs. What stayed with me most, though, was the sense of collective engagement. The brilliance, generosity, and passion of peers from diverse voices and generations. A powerful reminder of the creative energy that emerges when different perspectives unite around a shared purpose.

The theme — focused on food and waste systems in New York City — resonated deeply with the research I've been doing on sustainability, circularity, and the cultural dimensions of design. I was particularly drawn to the open-ended nature of the brief. It invited us to navigate ambiguity, consider multiple narratives, and engage with both the tangible and the systemic. Our group focused on composting as an entry point, which led us into broader discussions about waste, care, and value. These are themes I return to often in my work — especially when thinking about how materials carry meaning and how design can support more regenerative relationships with the land.

Our team's success was rooted in mutual trust, deep engagement, and the willingness to truly listen to one another. Everyone brought their full perspective — combining diverse skills, experiences, and cultural perspectives into something cohesive and intentional. The structure of the workshop played a crucial role. The mentors, organizers, and guest speakers consistently challenged us to be thoughtful about impact and intentional in our choices. That helped keep the work grounded. In the end, I think our process became our strongest asset —it wasn't just about the final outcome, but about how we got there together.

I imagine my future practice as a space of ongoing inquiry — one that moves between disciplines and scales, grounded in material research and shaped by a strong cultural background, while remaining open and innovative about the future. I'm especially interested in how design, art, and architecture can intersect to generate new forms of engagement with places and people. My work often begins with natural or reclaimed materials, but always returns to questions of meaning — how we relate to what we make, and what it reflects back to us. Moving between functional and conceptual sculpture and spatial interventions, it remains rooted in material experimentation. I'm drawn to design as a method of reflection and resistance: a way to propose other systems, other relationships. In recent years, I've been fortunate to collaborate on projects that explore Indigenous knowledge systems, climate resilience, and land-based practices — including research with Indigenous communities in Alaska and ongoing learning shaped by the knowledge and lifeways of communities in the Xingu region of Brazil. These experiences, along with my continued studies in Traditional Ecological Knowledge, have deepened my understanding of design as a tool for listening, for asking better questions, and for imagining. At its core, my dream practice is not centered only on objects or systems, but on relationships — between people and place, between tradition and possibility, between concept and matter. A space of research, creation, craft and exchange: one that rethinks value, resists disposability, and contributes to more attentive, place-based ways of living. Where making is inseparable from meaning, and where art, architecture, and design converge to propose balanced ways of inhabiting the world.

My website offers an overview of current projects and collaborations. I also share updates and process reflections on Instagram and I use LinkedIn to stay connected with the design community and share research-related work.

Gabriela Mierkalne - California College of the Arts

I'm originally from Riga, Latvia, and I'm currently studying Interior Design with a minor in Ecological Practices at California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

The most rewarding part of this workshop was seeing how quickly an idea can come to life when people from different backgrounds work toward a shared goal. It was exciting to apply what I've learned in school to something real that could better serve NYC communities.

The theme was directly aligned with my passion for sustainable design. Our team focused on transforming New York City's composting infrastructure into a more circular system that redistributes compost back to communities. It allowed me to bring together my interests in ecology, community-centered design, and education through spatial storytelling.

I think our success came from how well we respected each other's thoughts and leaned into our individual strengths. We were constantly building on each other's ideas, we trusted each other, and most importantly, we all cared for the issue we were addressing.

I see my future in design as a way to connect cultures, environments and people. Growing up in Latvia, I was surrounded by traditions that respected nature, valued craftsmanship and taught me to notice the small details - like how light moves through space or the memory that materials carry. My dream is to bring that design sensibility to a global scale. Create sustainable environments that activate the senses and form emotional connections for those who experience them.

You can find my work on Instagram where I share my design projects and fun things I am working on.

Sebastian Arce - Escuela Monica Herrera

I hail from the city of San Salvador in El Salvador and attend Escuela Monica Herrera.

I think the most rewarding part of the WantedDesign Workshop was being able to see our project completed and then shared on the big screen. I got a lot from talking about our solution and knowing what we accomplished in four days and that we delivered solid work.

Honestly, I had never heard of food design before, so it was something new for me and it was a fun way of learning a new area of design, which inspired me to be more curious about the small things in life like: where does my food come from? how do I eat it? and, why do I like certain spots?

I would say team work contributed to our success as we were open-minded and put the best interest toward the project first. We used our specific strengths, and because we knew how to deliver work equally we could leverage the potential of each teammate. We did not leave anyone behind, and did not go to the next stage until all of us were equally satisfied with the work.

I haven't explored every aspect of design, however as of now, I would love to have a furniture studio, and do custom-made pieces for all types of clients. Having a real one-on-one connection with the client throughout the process of a project appeals to me. Currently I work in a marketing and creative agency firm created with friends, you can see our work on Instagram.

As we saw earlier this month, Samsung has developed flat robots used to park cars.

This same month, China's Shanghai Construction No 2, an engineering and construction firm, also used small robots to move something larger overhead. Considerably larger: An entire city block.

Tasked with excavating a three-story underground space in Shanghai's Zhangyuan neighborhood, the firm found it would not be possible without demolishing the shikumen complex above. (Shikumen buildings are to Shanghai what tenement buildings are to New York, and they have historical significance.) They thus decided to temporarily move the entire block out of the way, using 432 walking robots that they developed specifically for the purpose.

These 'bots are essentially 10-ton hydraulic jacks with feet. Interconnected and synchronized, they work together to lift the building complex, then take slow steps in the desired direction. In 2023, they lifted the entire block and began moving it at a rate of 10 meters (33') a day, taking just under three weeks to get it completely out of the way. Last month the firm completed their excavation, and began shuffling the complex back into place. It was completely returned to its original location in early June.

Here's a look at the process:

The newly-excavated area will contain cultural and commercial spaces, as well as a parking complex and access to Shanghai's Metro lines.

Shopping cart cleaning protocols vary by supermarket, and even by location within the same brand. At my local Walmart they use hot water and steam—you can feel both the temperature of the cart and the dampness when they've come fresh out of the sanitization station. Other supermarkets, like Hy-Vee, use systems like this Sterile Cart, which sprays disinfectant on the carts.

Not all supermarkets have the footprint to house a dedicated cleaning area. In those cases they can outsource the cleaning. A company called HealthyCart operates mobile trailers where they show up to the site, get the carts into their trailer and blast them clean.

Over in Europe, Germany's ShopBox Group also produces mobile shopping cart washing systems.

Those latter two solutions are fine for suburbs where there's room to get the truck ins, but such solutions are a no-go for space-tight urban areas. Therefore Dutch company CleanShopping has managed to cram an entire system into a Sprinter van.

In order to gain complete coverage within a limited amount of space, the engineers had to get creative. There's no room to install a 360-degree nozzle arrangement, so they instead created a rotary drum for the carts:

CleanShopping operates in the Netherlands, but has recently made a foray into Spain; the company is planning a Europe-wide expansion.

From addressing malnutrition with a sustainable and scalable solution, to turning one of the planet's largest sources of agricultural waste into a biodegradable plastic alternative, to using synthetic biology to prevent antibiotics from contaminating our water— the innovations unveiled at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards offer bold, hopeful visions for a more sustainable and resilient future.

Organized by Ferris State University's Kendall College of Art and Design (KCAD), the Wege Prize has been inspiring college and university students from across the globe to rethink the way we produce and consume since 2013.

"With over 1,700 participants engaged from 73 countries around the world over its 12-year history, Wege Prize reflects the reality that our capacity for solving wicked problems together is only growing stronger," said KCAD Interim Dean Stephen Halko.

In this annual competition, interdisciplinary teams compete for a share of $65,000 in cash prizes by collaborating across disciplinary and cultural boundaries to develop solutions to systemic problems such as food insecurity, environmental harm, and climate change. Through a nine-month iterative design process, they're guided by a global panel of expert judges in developing their ideas into real-world applications, with a focus on the principles of the circular economy, a model that redefines economic growth by focusing on positive society-wide benefits.

"Instead of a linear model – take, make, and dispose – these teams are pioneering pathways towards a circular economy; one that is regenerative, restorative, and intentional by design," says Gayle DeBruyn, a KCAD professor who is on the organizing team for Wege Prize.

Awards

The five finalist teams emerged from an initial pool of 130 applications to present their fully developed ideas on May 16 at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards in Grand Rapids, Michigan:

1st Place ($30,000) - Agpress

Agpress, with members studying in the U.S. (North Dakota State University), Costa Rica (EARTH University), and Tanzania (The Institute of Finance Management) impressed the judges with the simple elegance of their circular solution to combat malnutrition by enhancing the nutritional content of ugali, a staple food made from maize flour that's consumed in over 20 countries across Africa.

Biodegradable packaging prototype of Agpress protein-enriched mealworm/maize flour.

While protein-enriched flour itself is nothing new, Agpress's process circularizes the concept by using two abundant agricultural waste streams—maize leaves and cassava leaves—as feedstock for farming mealworms. These mealworms—rich in protein and essential amino acids, iron, zinc, fiber, and vitamin B — are then ground into flour, which, when blended with maize flour, drastically enhances the nutritional value.

The low-cost inputs of the team's system coupled with its superior feed conversion (total feed input divided by livestock weight gain) over poultry and beef equals an affordable and accessible nutritional stream that can have an immediate impact in Africa and be scaled into other countries and refugee settlements around the world where food insecurity persists.

Agpress is also developing a line of food products made from this mealworm-enriched maize flour, including snack chips and tortillas, that will aid in increased adoption and provide their business with additional revenue streams.

Agpress team presenter, Brenda Maembe, with team mentor and Wege Prize alum, Anthony Illalio Mbunju, celebrate the Wege Prize trophy virtually with their team members in Tanzania and Costa Rica.

"Agpress stood out by approaching their idea in an impressively cohesive and systemic way," said judge Scot Welch, principal/founder of Global Bridgebuilders, a firm based in Grand Rapids, MI, providing organizational development, cultural transformation, and inclusion services to enterprises across the globe. "They considered not just how this could work on a local level, but how it could scale beyond that and become part of a larger circular economic system."

2nd Place ($20,000) – Rethread Africa

Rethread Africa, with all members studying in Kenya (Kenyatta University and the University of Nairobi) centered their proposal on converting sugarcane bagasse—the fourth largest source of agricultural waste in the world—into a biodegradable alternative to traditional plastic synthetics that decomposes in natural environments without commercial intervention.

Rethread Africa team member, Noreen Mwancha, with a model showcasing their unique material atop a waste site in Africa.

Using locally sourced microbes and solvent-free processes powered by renewable energy, the team is using sugarcane bagasse to produce Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), a type of bioplastic resin. In addition to viable prototypes of their material, the team is developing a network of industry partnerships to incorporate this material into products like clothing, food packaging, and feminine hygiene products that are currently either fully or partially composed of polyester and other petroleum-based materials.

Charles Otieno Oyamo presenting for team Rethread Africa at the 2025 Wege Prize Awards.

"This was an incredible display of innovation in the bioplastics space, and these kinds of models are critical for further support and scaling of bio-based materials," said judge Alysia Garmulewicz, founder and co-CEO of Materiom, a platform providing open data and AI to accelerate the development of bio-based materials. "Most notable is the team's leveraging of industry relationships and use of a locally appropriate feedstock derived from waste rather than raw material, which is critical to the success of novel polymers like PHA when you consider how costly they can be to manufacture."

This is the third year members of Rethread Africa have participated in Wege Prize. Having refined their concept each time and reached the semifinalist round in 2024, they stand out as a strong example of perseverance and dedication to the circular economy model.

3rd Place ($10,000) – Envirovex

Envirovex, with members studying in England (University of Oxford), Spain (University of Málaga), and the U.S. (Carnegie Mellon University), is developing an innovative bio-based technology that can help existing wastewater treatment systems adapt to the increasing presence of antibiotics released from agriculture, livestock, pharmaceutical, and wastewater discharge.

Digital rendering of the Envirovex modular bioreactor leading to antibiotic degradation.

Using artificial intelligence and cutting-edge synthetic biology, the team has created a series of synthetic enzymes that can be incorporated into a standalone filtration device to more effectively and efficiently filter out antibiotics—all at a fraction of the cost of completely retrofitting existing treatment systems. The team is even working on a way for their filtration system to capture and reuse some of the chemicals used in the antibiotic production process.

From left to right, Envirovex team members Vishwa Maharajan (presenter), Iván Toro Pineda, and Aayushi Barchha speak with Wege Prize judge, Braj (BK) Singh, after the awards ceremony.

"The judges have never seen a solution like this before, and while there are still some finer points to iron out, we acknowledge the tremendous potential here. This is an incredibly innovative solution in a sector that sorely needs it," said judge Nathan Shedroff, an entrepreneur, business strategist, education innovator, author, and speaker. "As they take this idea out of the lab and into the world, we're excited to see this team continue to embrace a circular model while refining the social and cultural impacts of what they're building."

Finalist Awards

Receiving $2,500 Finalist Awards were Eco Nasi and Dry Fresh Solution.

Eco Nasi, with team members studying in Kenya (Africa Nazarene University, University of Nairobi, Technical University of Kenya, and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology), presented a novel technology that converts pineapple pulp waste into a premium high-performance leather alternative that is five times more durable than conventional leather.

Dry Fresh Solution, with team members studying in Rwanda (Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture, Rwanda Polytechnic – Kigali, and the University of Rwanda),

presented a solar-powered dehydrator that extends the shelf life of fruit and vegetables by removing moisture through indirect heating, reducing post-harvest losses.

Wege Prize 2026: Starts Now!

Interested in becoming a part of Wege Prize? Wege Prize 2026 is already underway, with organizers encouraging potential participants around the world to begin networking and building teams over the summer. The team application portal will open in August 2025.

To learn more and stay connected, visit wegeprize.org.

If there's one material you're never going to rotomold, it's glass. But glass artisan Frederick G. Kahl, a/k/a the Great Fredini, has come close. Kahl designed this clever system for molding glass inside of a CNC-milled graphite mold using centrifugal force:

Kahl recently demonstrated his incredible technique at North Carolina's Starworks Glass, an arts nonprofit, where the video above was shot.

Our world is increasingly splintering into wildly differing realities. While many countries are struggling with a housing crunch and soaring energy costs, this Saudi Arabian resort houses guests in luxurious stainless steel pods powered by a 110,000-square-meter solar farm. Equipped with desalination and water reclamation systems, electric-powered boats and EVs for land transport, Shebara Resort is net-zero.

The resort, designed by Dubai-based architecture firm Killa Design, is sited on an island in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea. It features 73 of the pod-villas, with 38 located on the water and another 35 sited on the beach.

The resort is designed to provide an off-grid, zero-energy, zero-water, and zero-waste experience, positioning itself as a next-generation eco-tourism destination that merges sustainability with cutting-edge design. Fully aligned with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, Shebara sets a new benchmark for luxury hospitality by delivering an immersive, environmentally sensitive guest experience.

Masterplan & Architectural Vision Inspired by the natural formation of pearls in the sea, Shebara's masterplan mirrors a delicate string of pearls, where each villa is positioned like a floating orb, suspended over the pristine waters of the Red Sea. The arrival experience is designed as the radiant pendant, setting the stage for an unparalleled journey through hyper-luxury and sustainability.

The villas, crafted from polished stainless steel, reflect and refract the sky and sea, appearing to dissolve into the horizon. These orbs, delicately cantilevered over the water, give the impression of floating weightlessly, minimising their environmental footprint while maximising views and guest privacy. Carved openings shape the pool terraces, seamlessly integrating architecture with the landscape. The entry to each villa is sculpted with fluid, aerodynamic lines reminiscent of a superyacht, creating a sense of effortless movement and exclusivity.

Offshore Construction & Environmental Stewardship Shebara exemplifies how sustainable innovation can be embedded into every stage of design and construction. To preserve the fragile island ecosystem, all villas were entirely constructed, fitted out, and commissioned offshore, then transported to the island as near-complete structures, allowing for a minimally invasive installation. This methodology ensures that the resort's impact on the coral reefs, sand dunes, and wildlife habitats is kept to an absolute minimum.

At the core of Shebara's sustainability mission is a self-sustaining infrastructure, powered by its own 110,000sqm solar farm and supported by a desalination and reverse osmosis plant, sewage and water reclamation systems, and 100% electric land and marine transportation. Every detail is meticulously designed to operate at net-zero energy, water, and waste, reinforcing Shebara's commitment to the UNWTO goals for sustainable development.

Beyond Hospitality – A Commitment to Community & Conservation Shebara is deeply committed to environmental conservation and social responsibility. The resort actively contributes to the regeneration of mangroves, coral, and marine life, ensuring that the surrounding ecosystem not only remains intact but thrives. Guests are encouraged to take part in coral gardening, mangrove expansion, and turtle nesting programs, fostering a deeper appreciation for the island's delicate biodiversity.

Moreover, Shebara is dedicated to empowering local communities, particularly by expanding work and education opportunities for rural Saudi inhabitants. The resort's colleague program prioritises diversity and the inclusion of Saudi women, reinforcing a broader commitment to sustainable and ethical tourism development.

A Floating Vision of the Future Shebara is a testament to what is possible when visionary design, sustainability, and hyper-luxury converge. It is not just a resort, it's a new paradigm for regenerative tourism. Set against the backdrop of the Red Sea's untouched beauty, Shebara offers guests a floating escape into a world where architecture and nature exist in perfect balance.

The resort was completed last year and is now hosting guests.

British architect Matt Gilbert, founder of design studio Animaro, first released his Solstice clock in 2018. The kinetic clock expands and contracts with the time, reaching full expansion at noon and midnight, and contracting fully at 6am and 6pm.

Now he's back with a 2.0 version, which features refined mechanicals for smoother motion. Gilbert's also added a "cuckoo" feature, but rather than a bird announcing each hour, the single hand completes a quick spin, enacting a full expansion-contraction cycle.

One criticism: I do think Gilbert ought have made the hand out of a lighter-colored wood for better visual contrast.

Solstice 2.0 has been successfully Kickstarted. This is a limited run; Gilbert's only producing 80 units, with 31 already spoken for and 17 days left to pledge at press time.

The first time I saw an undermount bag hook was at a café in Japan in the '90s.

More recently they've spread to America, becoming popular at restaurants, cafes and bars.

It's a small and relatively inexpensive feature proprietors can retrofit to existing furniture, improving the UX of the patron in a small but welcome way.

Japanese specialty hardware company Sugatsune has pushed the UX a bit further. Their Slide Hook HK-CS30 is a bag hook that retracts.

The purpose of the design is twofold. The underside is flat, allowing taller patrons to prevent catching a knee, which is possible with an exposed hook. And because the hook presents itself visually on the edge of the table surface, it announces its presence to those who might not have realized it was there.

Some might call this classic Japanese overdesign, but in Japan, the details are everything.

The 2025 Professional winner in the Speculative category is Plant Futures created by Annelie Berner in collaboration with Monika Seyfried and Variable Studio. This project imagines how the Circaea Alpina flower would response to climate change between 2023 through 2100. By rooting these changes in a familiar flower viewers can contemplate the broader implications of climate change.

The Student Speculative winner is Standard Singlish by Cun Jia Tan from National University of Singapore. This project challenges viewers to reconsider the status of Singlish, the common language that unites the diverse groups of people within Singapore, by introducing a new Singlish typographical system together with a set of educational materials that reimagine a future where Singlish is formalized.

The jury team for Speculative category was led by Jury Captain Tiange Wang a Software Design Lead at IDEO. Wang curated a jury team which included Jaka Neon the Director of Design at Bird Buddy, I-Yang Huang the Co-founder of VLab, Crystal Jow the Co-founder of SIXA and Pedro Cruz an Associate Professor at Northeastern University.

The 2025 Speculative category recognizes future-oriented projects, whether physically or digitally produced, designed for the purpose of cultural commentary, intervention, or exploration, or created as speculative design for a client or educational institution. Projects include alternative structures, device protoypes for social needs, and hypothetical wearable implants.

Speculative Design Award Honorees

• Pro WinnerPlant FuturesBy Annelie Berner
• Pro Runner UpBat Night MarketBy Kuang-Yi Ku
• Pro Runner UpNo Bounds FestivalBy Austin Houldsworth
• Pro NotableArcaBy University of Washington
• Pro NotableLattice Gaming ControllerBy PA Consulting
• Pro NotableTalkTomb by Object Solutions™By Object Solutions
• Student WinnerStandard SinglishBy Cun Jia Tan
• Student Runner UpChimeBy Henning Birgersson
• Student Runner UpMcBiotaBy Pei-Yu Chen Pei-Yu Chen
• Student NotableBeyond Frequencies: Silent Funeral InstrumentsBy Tzu-Yen Chang
• Student NotableBirdseed: Adapt Birds to Future Plants with Special FruitBy Shenhuan Lu
• Student NotableFor The AwkwardsBy Cameron Lee
• Student NotableMemoria Net ZeroBy Jiawen Chen
• Student NotableMycoOracle——Slime DivinationBy Yuxin Dong
• Student NotableProtection From Facial RecognitionBy Zijing Liu
• Student NotableSacred RootsBy S. Laibi Ali

See All The Honorees of the 2025 Core77 Design Awards Here:

Apps & Platforms | Built Environment | Branding | Commercial & Industrial Equipment | Consumer Technology | Design for Social Impact | Emerging Technologies | Furniture & Lighting | Home & Living | Interaction | Lifestyle Accessories | Medical & Healthcare | Packaging | Speculative Design | Sports & Outdoor | Sustainability | Tools | Toys & Play | Transportation | Visual Communication

The 2025 Professional winner in the Sustainability is the FREITAG Mono[PA6]: Circular Backpack from FRIETAG lab ag and the team comprised of Jeffrey Siu, Tu Van Giang, Ilke Tokdede, Inge Hettich, Silvio Trionfini, and Denise Eugster. The new Mono[PA6] Backpack is circular—from the fabric to the zippers and buckles, it's made from a single material and can be easily recycled in its entirety at the end of its life. By launching this innovative product, FREITAG is closing a material loop and taking a significant step towards a circular economy.

The Student Sustainability winner is Aeropod from Wangyang Hu, Ifeoluwa Afolayan, Yuchen Cai, and Alex Clark at the Imperial College London & Royal College of Art. Aeropod is a biodegradable, seed-like device designed to regenerate soil from within. Aeropod allows Farmers to heal their land without losing income—unlocking a future where productivity and regeneration go hand-in-hand.

Kara Pecknold the VP of Regenerative Design at frog led the jury team for Sustainability. Her team included Nicole Miller the Managing Partner at Biomimicry 3.8, Binit Vasa the Workplace Strategy and Culture Manager at LEGO, Kajsa Westman the Experience Design Manager at Inter IKEA Group, and Tom Peach a Product Director at frog.

The 2025 Sustainability category recognizes any designed product, service or system tackling issues around sustainability in a thoughtful, research-backed manner through strategies ranging from materials, production methods, efficient systems, packaging and shipping.

Sustainability Award Honorees

• Pro WinnerFREITAG Mono[PA6]: Circular BackpackBy FREITAG lab. ag
• Pro Runner Up3formBy 3form
• Student WinnerAeropodBy Wangyang Hu
• Student Runner UpAqua GlowBy Jinhak Lee
• Student Runner UpRemora - Collaborative Biofouling SolutionBy Yuan Hong
• Student NotableAtapandBy Damian Mayaki
• Student NotableKA.MALBy Nan Jiang
• Student NotableRapid AutograftingBy Wolfgang Laimer
• Student NotableRDHPSBy Chu-An Chuang
• Student NotableREELINBy Simran Monga
• Student NotableSoilReviveBy CHIAYI LIU

See All The Honorees of the 2025 Core77 Design Awards Here:

Apps & Platforms | Built Environment | Branding | Commercial & Industrial Equipment | Consumer Technology | Design for Social Impact | Emerging Technologies | Furniture & Lighting | Home & Living | Interaction | Lifestyle Accessories | Medical & Healthcare | Packaging | Speculative Design | Sports & Outdoor | Sustainability | Tools | Toys & Play | Transportation | Visual Communication