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We envision new businesses and brands, and we design the experiences and capabilities that bring them to life.
A history of making the future
For nearly 50 years, we have been helping the world’s most imaginative leaders create human-centered products, services, and organizations that drive business, inspire culture, and shape the future.
David Kelley, Bill Moggridge, and Mike Nuttall founded IDEO in Palo Alto in 1991, at the dawn of a world-changing era of innovation in Silicon Valley. From the beginning, the company was built on a simple philosophy—that creativity is the most powerful tool for solving complex challenges.
Today, IDEO is a global design and innovation company with studios and collaborators around the world. We continue to help all kinds of organizations imagine what’s next—and, more importantly, how to make it a reality.
Today, IDEO is a global design and innovation company with studios and collaborators around the world. We continue to help all kinds of organizations imagine what’s next—and, more importantly, how to make it a reality.
The home of human-centered design
From its inception, IDEO has differentiated itself by understanding people better than anyone else—whether they’re customers or users, our own partners, entire organizations, or slices of a generation.
Designers like Jane Fulton Suri (pictured below) and our early research teams pioneered methods for studying human behavior and translating insights into meaningful new ideas. That process of observation, understanding, and creative interpretation is still one of our most valuable capabilities.
By embracing our values of empathy, humility, and open-mindedness, we're able to ask the best questions and design the best solutions.
By embracing our values of empathy, humility, and open-mindedness, we're able to ask the best questions and design the best solutions.
Pioneers of design thinking
In his 2009 book Change By Design, then-IDEO CEO Tim Brown put into words a process IDEO had been practicing for decades. The philosophy of design thinking—a repetition of testing hypotheses and building on your findings to create more human-centered solutions—was completely novel in the business world at the time. Alongside Tim’s appearance on the TED stage in 2009, IDEO’s work with our partners shined a spotlight on the potential of design and the impact it could have on the world.
Today, we’re still applying this progressive, iterative approach to everything from healthcare systems to emerging technologies, and supersonic jet planes, while testing our assumptions and tweaking the process along the way.
“Design thinking is a human-centered approach to innovation that draws from the designer's toolkit to integrate the needs of people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements for business success.”
Tim Brown
Watch Tim's TED Talk from 2009
Experience, expertise, and wide-eyed imagination
Our greatest strength lies in our people—and we don’t just hire designers. From registered nurses to magicians, architects to chefs, photographers to data analysts, the alchemy of our lived experiences and expertise means you won’t find our flavor of creativity and craft anywhere else.
Zoey Zhu
Senior Software Designer
Zoey is a software designer at IDEO San Francisco. Her approaches to design include storytelling, data visualization, XR, space design, software platform, installation, and creative prototyping.
Prior to IDEO, she worked with companies and academic institutions to explore the potential of leveraging technology to boost social engagement via technology and design tools. Beyond her digital realm, Zoey is a multimedia and textile artist, translating data and digital graphics into weaving patterns to create new forms of storytelling
Prior to IDEO, she worked with companies and academic institutions to explore the potential of leveraging technology to boost social engagement via technology and design tools. Beyond her digital realm, Zoey is a multimedia and textile artist, translating data and digital graphics into weaving patterns to create new forms of storytelling
Zachary Hobbs
Communications Design Director
Zach is a communication design director at IDEO Cambridge. He's inspired by the challenge of using creativity to foster belonging and connection, bringing a maker's ethos and hands-on experimentation to his work. Zach's first foray into design was when he started creating xeroxed fliers for his college punk band, which would mark the beginning of more than two decades of designing posters, album covers and merchandise for both major label releases and independent bands at the vanguard of the DIY underground.
Zach has since participated in a number of group and solo exhibitions around the United States and Europe.
Zach has since participated in a number of group and solo exhibitions around the United States and Europe.
Wai Tong
Business Design Lead
Prior to IDEO, Wai spent over seven years in primary and secondary market investment and commercial data analysis for large multinational corporations. In his previous roles, he led investment and M&A strategies in the global tobacco and adjacent markets.
When he’s not focused on charting business strategy, Wai is an avid hardcore gamer, enjoying the challenges of complex strategy and competitive systems.
When he’s not focused on charting business strategy, Wai is an avid hardcore gamer, enjoying the challenges of complex strategy and competitive systems.
Esha Reddy
Senior Design Researcher
Esha is a design researcher and experience designer at IDEO's Play Lab. With a background in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and an early career in Talent, her work has always centered people.
Esha’s perspective is shaped by nearly a decade living in intentional communities with 150+ housemates across the San Francisco Bay Area, exploring alternative housing, shared food systems, and do-ocracy. Outside of IDEO, you may find Esha doing immersive art, DJing for hours, or daydreaming about their next pop-up experience dubbed "Get On My Lawn".
Esha’s perspective is shaped by nearly a decade living in intentional communities with 150+ housemates across the San Francisco Bay Area, exploring alternative housing, shared food systems, and do-ocracy. Outside of IDEO, you may find Esha doing immersive art, DJing for hours, or daydreaming about their next pop-up experience dubbed "Get On My Lawn".
Jess Hall
Global Senior Marketing Director
Jess develops and runs IDEO's global marketing functions, strategies, and teams. She has experience in brand and agency side in VR, art tech, SaaS, events, consumer goods, fintech, entertainment, recruitment and luxury.
Prior to moving into marketing Jess was an artist (shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize), a graphic designer, a media buyer, a professional face painter, an arts workshop leader, and to date she's run more than 45 marathons and ultramarathons, plus three Ironman triathlons.
Prior to moving into marketing Jess was an artist (shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize), a graphic designer, a media buyer, a professional face painter, an arts workshop leader, and to date she's run more than 45 marathons and ultramarathons, plus three Ironman triathlons.
Peter Hyer
Partner
Peter has cultivated key relationships and business partnerships with C-suite partners to grow a multi-million dollar, industry-facing consulting portfolio in media and technology.
Peter's also known for the kaleidoscope of perspectives he brings to IDEO; he's been an ice-cream store manager, a trained Apple technician, he's worked on a chicken farm, he competed in swimming at a national level, and is a qualified architect.
He's now been at IDEO for over 15 years.
Peter's also known for the kaleidoscope of perspectives he brings to IDEO; he's been an ice-cream store manager, a trained Apple technician, he's worked on a chicken farm, he competed in swimming at a national level, and is a qualified architect.
He's now been at IDEO for over 15 years.
Matt Hovde
Senior Design Lead
Matt loves exploring challenges through the lenses of game design and storytelling. He believes that play is built into our DNA, guiding us toward social and creative well being. He's a facilitator, an experience designer, a dungeon master. He reads board game instructions for fun, so you don’t have to.
Before joining IDEO, Matt was the Artistic Director for The Second City theater in Chicago, where he harnessed improvisation as a dynamic process for deep collaboration, ideation, and learning. He runs workshops for clients and teams on creativity, teaches comedy at DePaul University, and never turns down a chance to host a game show.
Before joining IDEO, Matt was the Artistic Director for The Second City theater in Chicago, where he harnessed improvisation as a dynamic process for deep collaboration, ideation, and learning. He runs workshops for clients and teams on creativity, teaches comedy at DePaul University, and never turns down a chance to host a game show.
Chuli Duan
Design Research Lead
Chuli helps organizations turn human and cultural complexity into opportunities where business realities meet emerging technologies. She’s known for helping teams see the invisible forces—norms, power, status, and identity—that shape decisions and behavior, and turning those insights into clear direction.
Before IDEO, Chuli worked across the U.S. and China with international nonprofits and global development organizations. With a background in International Relations, she brings a grounded, systems perspective to every project.
Outside of work, she surfs for balance—body and mind.
Before IDEO, Chuli worked across the U.S. and China with international nonprofits and global development organizations. With a background in International Relations, she brings a grounded, systems perspective to every project.
Outside of work, she surfs for balance—body and mind.
Sarica Robyn Balsari
Design Research Lead
Sarica Robyn is an anthropologist of crisis and change, and a documentary filmmaker. She combines strategy, ethnography, behavioural science and human-centred design to help organisations understand complexity, navigate disruption and ground innovation in people’s lived realities. Her work focuses on using methods from academia to surface human needs and translate them into stories, services and products that drive real behaviour change.
Prior to IDEO, she completed her PhD in Visual Anthropology. In her free time, she curates photography exhibitions, plays jazz piano and is a trained sommelier.
Prior to IDEO, she completed her PhD in Visual Anthropology. In her free time, she curates photography exhibitions, plays jazz piano and is a trained sommelier.
Sergio Fregoni
Executive Design Director
Sergio leads IDEO’s AI work in Europe, helping organizations turn big ambitions, often around the climate transition, into real product, service, and venture portfolios that scale. Trained as a software engineer, he’s spent over a decade translating complex systems into human-centered solutions across industries, from luxury retail and AI at YOOX Net-a-Porter to media, construction, and grocery startups.
Outside of IDEO he speaks regularly on the future of AI and sustainability, and can usually be found exploring contemporary art spaces and plant-based bakeries in whatever city he lands in.
Outside of IDEO he speaks regularly on the future of AI and sustainability, and can usually be found exploring contemporary art spaces and plant-based bakeries in whatever city he lands in.
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