Materials of the future spotted at Milano Design Week 2025

At Milano Design Week, materials took center stage once again - not just as a support, but as a language, a vision, a direction. Looking back at what we saw in April, we’ve picked 10 standout projects for their use of innovative materials, from pigments made from microalgae to regenerated textile fibers. These projects look to nature, rediscover the past, and challenge the industry - poetic, sustainable, and culturally meaningful.


SO-colored by We+ - Milano Design Week 2025

SO-COLORED 
Tokyo-based design studio We+, founded in 2013 by Toshiya Hayashi and Hokuto Ando, presented the SO-Colored project at Galleria Rubin in the 5Vie district. This research initiative explores the use of microalgae as a sustainable and innovative source of natural pigments. Microalgae—tiny organisms found everywhere from water to rocks, sidewalks, and even indoor surfaces—can produce a wide range of vibrant colors, from greens to reds, yellows, and blues, depending on the species and growth conditions.
For this project, powdered microalgae were blended with a natural resin derived from Indonesian dammar, giving a smooth, glossy finish similar to ceramic or glass—while also being eco-friendly and biodegradable. The material was used to create furniture pieces, opening up new, natural, and sustainable color possibilities.
SO-Colored is the result of a collaboration between We+ and Algal Bio Co., Ltd.


Diade by Kvadrat 

OCEAN-BOUND POLYESTER 
In its Corso Monforte showroom, Kvadrat showcased the Diade upholstery fabric, developed in collaboration with artist Kapwani Kiwanga. Made entirely from recycled polyester sourced from ocean-bound plastic waste, the fabric features a deconstructed weave combining diagonal warp lines and straight weft lines, creating a prismatic, iridescent texture with real depth.
This ocean-bound polyester is produced in collaboration with Swiss company #tide, which specializes in recovering ocean plastic and turning it into sustainable yarn. The polyester comes from plastic collected within 10 km of coastlines and remote Thai islands. The color palette includes 16 shades, ranging from vibrant sky blues, sunny yellows, and airy greens inspired by nature, to neutrals echoing wood, stone, and white.


OurCarbon® 

OURCARBON
One of the most impactful innovations featured in the exhibition The Scale of Commitment—curated by Materially and hosted at Superstudio Più on Via Tortona—was OurCarbon®, a carbon-negative biomaterial made from sewage sludge, the organic waste left over from wastewater treatment. Through a thermal conversion process, this waste is turned into a sustainable black pigment that can be used in a wide variety of applications—from plastic (as an alternative to fossil-based black in compounds) and inks, to concrete (where it helps store carbon without reducing performance), and even textiles (to dye natural or synthetic fibers).
Brought to Italy by Garzanti Specialties, the material was also shown combined with Xi®, an innovative wood-plastic composite developed by Geomatrix. A real example of circular economy in action, showing how waste can become a key resource for future materials.


R100 by Hydro - Milano Design Week 2025

R100
Norwegian company Hydro, active in aluminum and renewable energy, continues its sustainability mission. After debuting the first 100% post-consumer aluminum last year—made entirely from recycled material—it returned to Capsule Plaza in the Porta Venezia area with R100. Designers like Sabine Marcelis, Keiji Takeuchi, and Cecilie Manz worked under one simple yet radical condition: the raw material (local post-consumer scrap) and the final product had to be sourced and made within 100 km of each other. A new project geography that rewrites the rules and supports Hydro’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.


Foto di Egoun design
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VORONOI
Voronoi is a series of small faceted and sculptural containers designed by Egoundesign. Presented at Spazio Vito Nesta during Milano Design Week, Voronoi is a collaboration between Egoundesign and 3D4Mec and is the first product in the world to experiment with 3D printed brass, thanks to the development of industrial printers specifically for this metal. Using Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) technology, the containers are made through laser melting and solidification of brass powder, achieving complex and lightweight shapes without compromising strength. 
Thanks to 3D4Mec's patented automatic recovery system, the raw material is 98 percent utilized, significantly reducing waste. Voronoi is also presented in a new version made of bio-based PLA.


Paper Weaving by Abid Javed

PAPER WEAVING
At the Material Alchemists exhibition at Triennale Milano, British designer and ceramicist Abid Javed presented his Paper Weaving project. Known for his sculptures exploring the intersections of science, spirituality, and design, Javed brings his background in molecular biology into his material research. Paper Weaving transforms paper—often seen as fragile—into a three-dimensional, structured surface using innovative weaving techniques.
This project shows how material innovation doesn’t only mean discovering new substances, but also regenerating and reinterpreting existing ones, expanding their aesthetic and functional potential.


Trace of Water by Honoka & Aqua Clara 

TRACE OF WATER
One of the most poetic and thought-provoking material experiments at Design Week 2025 was Trace of Water by Japanese studio HONOKA, in collaboration with Aqua Clara. The installation at Palazzo Litta reimagined recycled plastic in a poetic way. The idea stems from observing a physical phenomenon: when water sits inside PET bottles for a long time, it leaves behind a kind of "memory" in the plastic. When heated, this memory creates tiny bubbles and organic textures.
This visible trace becomes the foundation for a new material, transformed into visually striking surfaces and furnishings. A beautiful example of how waste can be recovered and reimagined as a narrative element.


NOAI® by Marco Carini x Living Divani

NOAI®
Around the Étoile tables by Marco Carini, Living Divani introduced a major innovation: a top made from NOAI®, a next-gen natural and sustainable biocomposite. Made from raw earth, hemp fibers, high-quality quartz, and natural mineral oxides, NOAI® not only adds a rich texture and elegant look to the tables, but also has photocatalytic properties that help improve indoor and outdoor air quality.
It’s a strong, lightweight, and durable material that fits perfectly within the principles of green building and sustainable design. NOAI® represents a perfect balance between technological innovation and environmental respect, offering new possibilities for beautiful, functional, and responsible surfaces.


Tablì by Lavazza

TABLÌ
At Milano Design Week 2025, Lavazza introduced Tablì, a product that’s set to revolutionize single-serve coffee by putting sustainability and materials at the heart of the experience. Unlike traditional plastic or aluminum capsules, Tablì is a solid coffee pod made entirely from compressed coffee—no outer casing needed.
This system is a major leap forward, not just for the brand, which is celebrating 130 years, but for the coffee industry as a whole. It redefines how we think about responsible consumption and design. Launching in September 2025, Tablì is the result of five years of R&D and over 15 patents—a truly sustainable future for single-serve coffee, combining material innovation and environmental sensitivity in one daily ritual.


Light in Matter by Emanuel Gargano

LIGHT IN MATTER 
Another forward-looking materials project is HYLEtech, a new brand launched by Luce5, which unveiled a cutting-edge technology at the Triennale based on a fully electrifiable high-tech aluminum. Used in the Light in Matter luminous sculptures by Emanuel Gargano, this material fuses structure and light into a single element, removing the need for external light sources.
The project combines advanced aesthetics with deep technological research and stands as a statement of conscious design: “It’s no longer the time for plastic, deforestation, or petroleum-based materials,” reads the brand’s manifesto.


Agreste by Estudio Campana x ALPI

AGRESTE 
Starting from production waste, ALPI introduces Agreste, a new decorative surface designed by Estudio Campana that turns wood into a tactile narrative. Inspired by the dry lands of Brazil, its irregular pattern and vivid texture echo the cracks and fissures of parched soil, evoking a raw, imperfect beauty. Through a refined upcycling process, ALPI reaffirms its vision of responsible design—where even “waste” becomes a material worth creating with.