FUTURE OF XYZ

S7 E25: For our final new episode of 2025, we’re speaking with Dr. Delfina Fantini van Ditmar - a Senior Researcher at the Royal College of Art where she co-directs the Becoming Regenerative Lab and a Professor in Research at CARADT in the Netherlands where she also Chairs the Regenerative Art & Design group. With an academic background merging biology with design, her practice seeks to empower the next generation of designers to address the social, ecological, and cultural transitions of our time. In this episode, Delfina walks us through what regenerative design is, how it differs from sustainability or circularity, and why she believes healing past damage and creating resilient, equitable systems that support both human and environmental wellbeing is humanity's best path forward across design disciplines, commercial industries, and economic and political systems. An inspiring conversation for closing out one year and heading into the next! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E24: Happy Thanksgiving, America! And happy eating everyone everywhere! In this special edition, we’re speaking about food, and specifically, fine dining. Our guests are both formally trained top chefs and acclaimed restaurateurs who have each had restaurants in New York City recognized with a Michelin star, as well as James Beard Award wins and nominations. Together, we explore fine dining as it has been, as it is, and as it’s becoming. From quality of ingredients to innovation in the kitchen, ambiance of the space to special attention to service – we hear how fine dining is moving beyond white tablecloths and fussiness, while remaining an immersive experience transports diners into a special occasion. Bon appétit! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E23: Our guest this week is Martha Tsigkari, a Senior Partner at Foster + Partners, among the world’s most acclaimed architectural firms founded by Lord Norman Foster. For over 20 years, Martha is also the Head of their Applied R+D group. Developing machine learning, optimization and simulation tools, integrated processes and physical interfaces - the group pursues state-of-the-art research that blends architecture, engineering, and computer science to support the firm’s globally recognized projects that push the limits on what we thought was possible. In the ‘Future of Applied R&D’, Martha talks about facilitating cross-team collaboration, enabling emotionality, and being “dreamers of the impossible”. Don’t miss! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E22: Everyone is talking nonstop about how machines, robots, and AI are going to replace humans in the workforce and beyond. But what’s true? This week, FUTURE OF XYZ speaks with Tey Bannerman, a trained product designer and software engineer with over 20 years in the tech sector, including designing and building AI systems for startups, large retail players, and multinationals in regulated industries like banking, insurance, and fintech. Most recently, a Partner and Head of McKinsey Design Europe, and co-author of ‘The AI Revolution’  – Tey believes the best place for AI tools is in supporting humans and to support our professional roles in such a way that they are reshaped and success in them redefined, versus causing the roles themselves to disappear. Tune in for this timely and robust discussion about one of the hottest topics of today. ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E21: In this episode, we speak with Gita Rebbapragada, COO at Crunchyroll, the global entertainment platform specializing in anime, manga, and Asian media. Anime is a hand-drawn or computer-generated animation style typically originating from Japan– but now coming from all corners of the planet. And it’s an entertainment sector estimated to reach $60B over the next few years. This is a fascinating and far-reaching conversation about community and creative processes, big business and the convergence of art, culture, TV, film, music, gaming, live events, and merchandise. ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E20: What is creativity and why does it matter? How does creativity differ from innovation? What is the role of imagination? Of education? In the Future of Creativity, we speak with Doreen Lorenzo, Assistant Dean at the School of Design and Creative Technology at the University of Texas and former President of frog design. In this expansive conversation, we talk about the importance of research, human-centered thinking, ideation, iteration, evolution, and execution. This is an amazing discussion no one in the design or creative worlds should miss. ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E19 (150 overall): Acclaimed industrial designer and recent author, Nick Foster RDI, joins XYZ for our 150th episode of the series! In this special episode, we celebrate not only 150 episodes of future exploration, but also Nick’s recently released book ‘COULD SHOULD MIGHT DON’T: HOW WE THINK ABOUT THE FUTURE’ by MacMillan. And we’re going meta here to talk about the ‘Future of Thinking About the Future’. As musician, filmmaker, and cultural curator, Questlove writes in a testimonial “the book helps provide a meaningful framework for considering the big questions of “Where are we going? Who will we be when we get there?”.” As a Futures Designer who spent an esteemed career at globally renowned tech companies like Apple, Nokia, Sony, Dyson, and most recently as Head of Design at Google X - this conversation is spot on in terms of timing, content, and curiosity for the moment we currently face. Tune in to learn how we can better think about the future in terms of business, culture, technology, mental health, the planet and more. Happy 150th episode XYZ! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E18: If you were to read Brittan Heller’s CV, you might wonder why we’re speaking with her about the ‘Future of 3D Computing’. A Yale-educated lawyer who prosecuted war crimes in Rwanda and the Congo, supported refugees from North Korea and Afghanistan, and served in the U.S. Dept. of State and Dept. of Justice before becoming a Teaching Fellow & Law Lecturer at Stanford University’s Law, Science & Technology program - Brittan is now a globally-recognized leader in technology and human rights. In this important conversation about our fast-moving shift into XR, spatial computing, and from 2D to 3D internet- we address topics around convergence, neuroscience, dark patterns, AI, privacy, and platform governance. This episode serves as a primer for everyone to consider what is the intersection of emerging technology and legal protections. Brittan explains how we got here and shares her expert belief that if only we can get the “rights” part “right”, the future will be beautiful. Don’t miss! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E17: Off the shelf or highly bespoke, interior designers know that the choice of floor coverings is one of the most important decisions they can make for the feel of a finished space. From throw rugs to area rugs, wall-to-wall carpeting or other wovens – this is a highly-specialized industry where local and global mills and weavers work hand in hand with designers to produce products based on material, color, pattern, weave, thickness, ecologic, price point, and even timeline needs and preferences. In this episode, we speak with Ana and Ali, Managing Partners of Toronto-based Creative Matters, a design studio founded in 1988, focused on stunning, bespoke, ethically-produced floor coverings. In our conversation, we address how aesthetics are always the #1 decision driver, but that functional concerns weigh heavily in more high-use commercial settings, including hospitality. Tune in to learn more about this often taken-for-granted interior component that has a big design, community, and environmental impact! ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more. 

S7 E16: The fashion industry is one of the world’s largest polluters, responsible for 10% of total greenhouse gas emissions and with 87% of textiles ending up in landfills or incinerators every year. Recent forecasts suggest that the trend is rapidly continuing in a negative direction with the resulting climate change impact anticipated to displace tens of millions around the world. Other than consumers consuming FAR less, fashion and other manufacturing industries need to shift towards sustainable manufacturing. Our guest this week is Shelly Xu- a fashion entrepreneur, holder of multiple technology patents, multi-time nominee for the prestigious Earthshot prize, winner of multiple other international awards, and CEO & Founder of SXD- a software platform that uses AI to reimagine pattern making for zero waste in the fashion industry and beyond. This is the application of technology at its best – a simple but real revolution that saves businesses money and the planet’s health too. Tune in to learn more. ABOUT THE SERIES: FUTURE OF XYZ is an award-winning interview series that explores big questions about where we are as a world and where we’re going. Presented by iF Design- host of the prestigious iF DESIGN AWARD- FUTURE OF XYZ is also a proud member of the SURROUND Podcast Network. New episodes every other Thursday. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Follow @futureofxyz and @ifdesign on Instagram, listen wherever you get your favorite podcasts, watch on YouTube, or visit ifdesign.com/XYZ for show links and more.