Design-Led X (DLX) Platform, IIS, UTokyo
東京大学生産技術研究所価値創造デザイン推進基盤

We explore how design connects science and technology with society to engage the challenges of our time, reshaping how we relate to them.
At the DLX Design Lab, we work on Treasure Hunting.

Projects

Moisture Commons
with Yoshimura Lab / Information Media Center, UTokyoClimate change's impacts reach us through water such as heavy rainfall, floods, and droughts, and at the core of it all lies the water vapor moving through the atmosphere. We make this invisible transport visible, reframing the water in our skies as a shared, borderless commons.

VINCI 2026 Art Gallery

Rise
with River and Environmental Engineering Lab, UTokyoRise follows communities living with rising seas and recurring floods. Using an aquarium as a metaphor, it reflects the resilience of people who keep adapting, while also asking: Can those facing it escape on their own, or must we all act together? Who built the aquarium and filled it?

Japan SciCom Forum 2026

Street2Sea / Evaclock
with Yoshimura Lab / CSIS, UTokyoHow can we help residents evacuate in time during a flood? Street2Sea generates street-level images of homes with floodwater rendered to a predicted depth, letting residents see the risk for themselves. Evaclock turns neighbors' evacuation into a visible social cue that nudges them to act.

UIST 2026 Poster

Rats in the City
with Veterinary Ethology Lab, UTokyoRat populations are rising worldwide, and total eradication is unrealistic. Rats in the City turns our prejudice against rats into informed curiosity and tolerance, asking whether coexistence through boundaries is possible — sharing urban space while minimizing conflict between people and rats.

iF Design Award 2026
Gwangju Design Biennale 2025
Matsudo International Science Art Festival 2025

Talking with Neurons
with Ikeuchi Lab, UTokyoTalking with Neurons invites us into a real-time, remote conversation with neural organoids in the lab. The exchange is minimal compared to human conversation, yet it opens a question: Could we one day have more complex conversations with living neurons?

SIGGRAPH 2023 Art Gallery
21_21 DESIGN SIGHT Exhibition: Future Elements
TOKYO PROTOTYPE 2026

Auze / MIRAbot
with Honma K. Lab, UTokyo / JARIAuze and MIRAbot help integrate autonomous technology seamlessly into everyday driving, building trust in SAE Level 3 private vehicles. They make the semi-autonomous experience more supportive, enjoyable, and accessible — especially for those less comfortable with new technology.

HRI 2026 Late Breaking Reports
CHI 2025 Video Showcase
CHI 2024 Video Showcase
HRI 2024 Late Breaking Reports

Tidal Space
with Cream on ChromeTidal Space uses curtains and a soundproof panel as spatial moderators between the modes of labor parents juggle while working from home. They shift from full separation for focused work, to translucent screens for checking on the children, to a shared space for kids and parents to play in.

SIGGRAPH Asia 2022 Emerging Technologies
Dutch Design Week 2021
Seoul Design Festival 2021

Isle of ReflectionsIsle of Reflections is an interactive installation explored via Zoom, where lights and shadows respond in real time to the viewer's voice. Viewers move between breakout rooms, each a live view from a different angle, to explore a virtual island of light and color — a way to experience installation art remotely, developed during the COVID pandemic.

Red Dot Award 2021: Best of Best
SIGGRAPH 2021 Art Gallery