US – The Internet of Things-enabled modular system allows consumers to increase the potential of limited urban living space.
MIT Media Lab has joined forces with the founder of design agency Fuseproject, Yves Béhar, to create a smart home unit inspired by the rapid rate of global urbanisation. ‘Mass urbanisation is one of the biggest challenges that the world is facing,’ Ori founder and CEO Hasier Larrea tells LS:N Global. 'We’re trying to bring new technology so that we can liberate the concept of square footage.’
In an age of digitalisation consumers are looking for smart products to augment their lifestyles. Ori uses technology to play with the idea of space, manipulating it to benefit the consumer. The kinetic elements allow people to divide space according to their needs, while also providing storage on a larger scale than a conventional apartment design.
‘We are seeing a big trend in smart products, thermostats, lights and cars, but we are trying to see how those concepts also apply to spaces, so we are creating a new category for the Internet of Things, which is the category of space and furniture,' says Larrea.
The Big Picture
- In an age of New Bricolage Living, brands are using technology to create innovative solutions to the problems that arise from overpopulating urban areas
- This next iteration of the smart home shows how smart devices are infiltrating all areas of consumers’ lives to create a culture that focuses on convenience