For 50-odd years, American innovation has felt dominated by the creative output of Silicon Valley, thanks to some very smart people who gathered there and went about changing the world. They didn’t trademark the word, but they didn’t need to... they were innovation, innovation was them.
But times are changing.
Silicon Valley is still doing its thing, but it’s no longer the only pony in town.
In fact, “the next big thing” is going to be really big. BIG big. Fusion reactor big. Because a new wave of frontier-chasing pioneers are turning their talents to our foundational industries. To the kind of fundamental ideas the world runs on.
They’re building real things IRL: reusable rockets, electric vehicles, AI-driven factories, smarter supply chains, autonomous drones, and a new industrial base for our post-industrial world.
They are *dramatic pause* The New Industrials.
At least that’s what some of us call them, mostly because it’s fun to say, like the name of an experimental rock band from the 90s.
These New Industrials are pursuing innovation that will reshape our world and impact us as a society, not just as individuals.
They’re taking on some of the biggest and toughest challenges around: manufacturing and infrastructure, logistics and supply chains, energy, mobility, smart living, space, and defense. Industries that have been commercially sidelined for decades or quietly offshored are being surrounded by fresh energy and excitement. If this was Hollywood, we’d be midway through a training montage as they prepare for a Rocky-style comeback.
The Design and innovation skills we honed in the digital world are finally being applied to the real world as well. This is something of a necessity. Many of these legacy industries found themselves in the sleepy cul-de-sac of progress, with little way forward after the playbook of optimization squeezed them dry. Rebooting these industries requires big bold bets on the future, fueled by novel ideas and novel technologies.
Yes, the New Industrials know that to make things better, you have to make things differently. And one of the main tools they’re using is Design.
And that, in case you were wondering, is where we come into the story. We’ve had the good fortune to be immersed in this space over the last few years through numerous projects and have grown a deep affinity and love for it, not just for the positive impact they’re striving for but for the modern sensibilities they bring with them. They're not waiting to get established to worry about Design, they’re worrying about Design to help them get established. They’re building Design maturity from the start. And treating their story and brand with the same care they treat their products, so that both speak with one voice.
They're not waiting to get established to worry about Design, they are worrying about Design to help them get established.
Take Auger, brainchild of Dave Clark (the man from Amazon who taught you to expect a package on your doorstep almost as soon as you order it). They’re mixing AI with deep supply chain expertise to transform how the supply chain is run. Yes, that supply chain that creates pretty much everything out there in the world. A big part of Auger’s innovation is a radically new style of interface whose Design will tame the supply chain’s complexities and let it function as simply as your favorite app. Their product will revolutionize how the world works so we can create better, faster, and more sustainably, with a drastic reduction in waste.
Auger’s journey is just starting, and we’re helping them build a brand platform as transformative as their product, creating a whole new narrative around the supply chain to allow them to own the category from the moment they launch.
Anduril is another company we’ve had the chance to partner with and help shape from an early stage. Anduril embraced its outsider status and went about creating products completely unburdened from the conventions of the past, resulting in a major disruption of the defense space. They’ve elevated the role of storytelling, with an ownable industrial Design language for their products, and a unique tone of voice for their communications that injects creativity and humor into a space where it once seemed unthinkable.
Brand in stealth mode is looking to revive the maritime industry and rewire American logistics for the next century by bringing its unused waterways back online after decades of decline.
To achieve this, they need buy-in from audiences as varied as labor unions to port authorities, truckers to congressmen, Silicon Valley engineers to admirals and investors. We’re helping them achieve this with a visual brand that serves as a bridge between a rich maritime heritage and the future they’re striving to create. Fully evolved before they launch and fully expressed across digital, product, comms, even the industrial Design of their vessels. Plus, a tone of voice and story powerful enough to build a sense of shared purpose and unity from all their disparate stakeholders.
Saronic is innovating within the defense technology space to build and deploy small, low-cost, autonomous sea vessels.
We helped them use the power of a razor-sharp proposition and a fully evolved Design language to make a splash while they were still in the phase of building their prototype. And to make this possible, we found a way to build the brand in an iterative way to support their rapid growth and development. This work is driving the broader cultural conversation—their visuals and language are used regularly by politicians and journalists alike—turning Saronic into the poster child for their category.
Also working in this space is Seasats. They’re building vessels capable of crossing the Pacific completely unmanned to undertake research and surveillance for both commercial and defense needs.
We’re helping them take the unusual approach of becoming a maker-first brand, a notion that integrates their hands-on approach of letting their actions speak first. It means their business and brand are perfectly aligned so they can tell their story in a unique yet authentic way.
The new Seasats will be launching soon.
Finally, there’s Epirus. A defense company born out of some pretty seismic shifts happening in that space, where novel threats like drone swarms are rewriting the rules of engagement. Today, bigger does not equal badder. And budgets cannot buy you victory. Outthinking and out-innovating is now key.
This requires not just a change in our technology—which Epirus is leading with its electromagnetic defenses—it requires a larger shift in how we think and organize our national defense. Inspiring this mind shift in government and culture alike is part of what we’re building their brand to do from the outset.
The opposite of by Design
is by accident.
Design is how you take control.
Many of these new ventures are backed by future-focused investors who passionately believe in the importance of this emerging space and are betting big on their success. Firms like 8VC and Lowercarbon Capital are strong examples, both of which we continue to collaborate closely with on such projects.
Whatever the product or industry, what all these endeavors have in common is that Design is not an afterthought, it is a preface to all good thinking, creating progress that is both faster and more sustainable.
And they’re using Design as a tool for realizing their intentions. As we are often found repeating, “The opposite of by design is by accident.”
By which we mean every action you take in creating something, conceptually or physically, puts in motion a flurry of consequences.
The only real choice you have is to be in control of those consequences or let the chips fall where they may.
Design is how you take control.
It is to craft with absolute intention every step in your development to best serve the goals that underpin them.
After all, true success is no accident. It’s all by Design.
If you'd like to learn how we are using Design to help these brands achieve their goals and would like to benefit from the expertise we’ve gathered in the space,
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