SaloneSatellite Award 2026: the future of design by way of algorithms and shells

Selected from among talents under 35, the winners were announced before an international audience. Chairing the jury, as she has done since the very first edition in 2010, Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at MoMA, emphasised that the award is not merely an aesthetic recognition, but represents the ability to identify “an intuition ahead of the market, research ahead of industrial scale.”

A bridge between tradition and digital innovation

The SaloneSatellite Award has mapped global talent from 2010 until the present day, conferring awards on 45 designers from 24 different countries. The 2026 edition saw projects that meld the precision of computational control with the sensitivity of natural materials triumph, responding to the challenge of a world seeking sustainability without compromising on good looks.
 

The three winners

1st Prize: RUSSO BETAK (Denmark) – Project: NIPPON

The top step of the podium was proudly Danish with a soul that looks to the East. The Nippon pendant lamp, part of the Ark collection, is synonymous with bio-engineering and craftsmanship.

• Innovation: The team has developed a large format 3D custom printer to turn waste shells discarded by restaurants into a rigid yet fluid material.
• Motivation: Here experimentation with materials is combined with a simple, elegant form, holding the promise of future developments. 
• In the winners’ words: “We discovered that shells diffuse light in a unique way. We were inspired by classic Danish and Japanese design to reinvent a heritage through new circular materials.”

2nd Prize: IOUS STUDIO (Netherlands) – Project: 3DP CERAMIC TILES

In second place, the Dutch studio redefines the concept of coverings. Here, clay is not modelled by hand, but extruded by means of computational control. 

• Concept: Digital fabrication that becomes “new craftsmanship,” in which the pinpoint precision of the machine is combined with the materiality of the clay.
• Motivation: This project demonstrates the potential and applications of computational design, whilst also offering a glimpse of future market developments.

3rd Prize: JÜNGERKÜHN (Germany) – Project: SOFT TOUCH

Third prize went to a German project exploring robotic tactility. The Soft Touch collection of porcelain vases features textures that look organic, almost human.

• Aesthetics: Unique patterns that become clearer the closer they are seen, revealing a “mastery” generated by algorithms.
• Motivation: Unexpected and poetic, this piece harnesses the potential of digital technology whilst retaining the tactile quality and distinctive appearance of handmade items.
• La motivazione: inaspettato e poetico, il lavoro raccoglie le promesse del digitale, imprimendo la tattilità e l’aspetto tipici del fatto a mano.