Unread Messages

Unread Messages is the brainchild of Six:Thirty, a London-based agency specialising in the intersection of design and technology. As we explored in our macrotrend The Sharded Self, technology has opened up untold creative possibilities, but can also cause conflict and anxiety. ‘Technologies are a reflection of societal values, so if they’re not working for us then we need to ask why,’ says Roma Levin, founding partner at Six:Thirty. ‘What version of the future do we want and what do we need?’

Insight agency Northstar created an open online community to help research the topic, and discussions involved more than 125 consumers. Three overarching themes were created: Empowered But Dependent, The Curated Self and Compulsive Behaviours. Eight designers were then selected to respond to these themes, ranging from more traditional product designers such as Dean Brown to creative technologists such as Matteo Loglio.