Integrated Systems Europe has announced that Carlo Ratti, the leading architect,
engineer, inventor, and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
will present the ISE Opening Address on 5 February 2018.
Ratti’s speech will follow shortly after the conclusion of the Smart Building Conference
during which Ratti will participate in the one-day conference’s closing roundtable
discussion.
Ratti commented: “I am delighted to be giving the opening address at ISE 2018.
Social and technological developments in the evolution of smart cities and smart
buildings are quickly shaping how we must plan to work and live in the future. I look
forward to sharing my thoughts and experiences with the ISE audience.’
At MIT, Ratti directs the Senseable City Lab, a research group that explores how new
technologies are changing the way we understand, design and ultimately live in cities.
He is also a founding partner of the international design and innovation office Carlo
Ratti Associati (CRA). Drawing on Ratti’s research at MIT, CRA merges design and
urban planning with cutting-edge digital technologies, so as to contribute to the
creation of “architecture that senses and responds’.
Significant achievements of the office include the masterplan for a creative hub in the
City of Guadalajara, the Future Food District at Expo Milano 2015, the renovation of
the Agnelli Foundation HQ in Turin and the Digital Water Pavilion at Expo Zaragoza
2008, with the latter named among the “Best Inventions of the Year’ by Time
magazine. Product design projects range from experimental furniture for Cassina to
light installations for Artemide and responsive seating systems with Vitra.
In each instance, Ratti’s studio investigated the ways in which new technologies,
including digital sensors and portable devices, are changing both the built
environment and everyday life. Projects from the studio have also been exhibited in
cultural venues including the Venice Biennale, New York’s MoMA and the Istanbul
Design Biennial.
Ratti was named one of the 50 most influential designers in America by Fast Company
and highlighted in Wired Magazine’s “Smart List: 50 people who will change the world.’
Mike Blackman, Integrated Systems Europe Managing Director, commented: “Carlo
Ratti is a perfect fit for ISE as he works in a field that has grown in importance for our
exhibitors and attendees. He will bring a unique insight into smart city and smart
building development. Not only is he a leading researcher and educator he puts the
theory into practice with his award-winning architectural designs and inventions
around the world.’
