By Design
By Design is a podcast from Fast Company that explores how design influences the way we live, work, and interact. Hosted by senior editor Liz Stinson and global design editor Mark Wilson, the show covers the latest innovations in user experience, product design, and architecture. It examines the macro impacts of design trends, including wearable technology, AI's effect on product design, and the intersection of design with business, tech, politics, and culture.
Episodes
Meet the godfather of the protein boom
If you’re extra focused on hitting your macros, Peter Rahal has more to do with it than most other people. He’s the co-founder of RXBAR and, more recently, David Protein.
With David, Rahal and his team have figured out how to capture attention for something as commonplace as a protein bar while using minimal advertising and sleek, simple packaging. It appears David has struck gold again with the
Tim Heidecker’s plan to get you off social media and onto InfoWars
As you’ve probably heard, The Onion is in the process of taking over InfoWars, the platform started by right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
How is this a design story, you may ask? Well, we’ve got an interview with the creative director for new InfoWars — Tim Heidecker.
Liz sat down with Tim and Fast Company’s Lilly Smith, who has been reporting on The Onion’s InfoWars takeover, to talk
Life, love, and design with Samsung’s Mauro Porcini + Mark’s big news
It’s a jam-packed episode of By Design—and for good reason.
First, we’ll share some big news of our own before moving onto the design world’s latest. We look at how Claude Design caught Anthropic’s collaborators (and competitors) by surprise and unpack the Trump administration’s newest design hire: Peter Arnell as the nation’s “chief brand architect.”
Then, Mark sits down with Mauro Porcini, Sa
Why furniture designer Tyler Hays is ‘obsessed’ with AI
Tyler Hays has made a career working with his hands. Making everything from couches to jigsaw puzzles to guitars, the BDDW founder and lead designer says he has now fallen for AI.
“I'm absolutely obsessed with it,” Hays says. “Every single thing you wanna know about … you can pick any subject and ask it in 10 different ways and spend an embarrassing amount of hours”
As BDDW closes its SoHo show
What is a design job in 2026? Plus, Anthropic’s head of design gets an unexpected critique
We’re taking a trip to the Bay Area on this very special episode of By Design.
We’ll start off by discussing a very big question: What is a design job in 2026? The answer, in part, can be found in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, where Mark Wilson brings a dispatch from his latest reporting trip. (00:00:42) Plus, the latest design job numbers and what they mean.
Then, he and Liz Stinson inter
Behind the Oscar-nominated design: How ‘Sinners’ makes you believe its world
With the Oscars coming up quickly, we spoke with the woman behind the design landscape for Sinners: Hannah Beachler. She’s been director Ryan Coogler’s go-to production designer for several films, including Fruitvale Station, Creed, two Black Panther movies, and now Sinners, which smashed the record for most Academy Award nominations. Beachler sat down for a long, ranging interview full of Sinners
Apple robs Google, Joe Gebbia goes to the White House, and Ikea's CEO on what matters more than profit
It’s a packed first episode of the year at By Design and we have a big guest: Ikea’s Juvencio Maeztu gives his first major interview since taking over as CEO. It’s a deep, candid conversation about his philosophy on affordability, life at home, and how Ikea’s business structure allows it to have motives that aren’t all about profit.
But first, the news: We go deep on global design editor Mark Wi
The 7 biggest design trends of 2025
What defined design in 2025? For our December episode, we look back at the seven most significant design trends of the year.
This time, Liz and Mark are joined by some special guests, as they discuss growing movements ranging from vibecoding to ragebait advertising. They ask questions like, is craft dead in the age of AI? And, when did everything in design become so political?
Tune in for the b
Architecture for the AI age: How a major design firm approaches data centers
As AI companies pour trillions of dollars into building infrastructure like data centers, one non-tech sector is seeing a boom of its own: Architecture.
This month on By Design, our guest is Jordan Goldstein, the co-CEO of Gensler, the world's largest architecture firm, which is seeing skyrocketing demand for data center design. He explains how AI has transformed the firm and how Gensler approac
Mamdani’s poster designer breaks down modern political aesthetics
You might not know the name Tyler Evans, but you’ve definitely seen his work. He designed Zorhan Mamdani’s iconic campaign poster, led design for Bernie Sanders’ campaign, and was the Teamster’s creative director. Now the creative director for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Evans has a front-row seat to some of the biggest players in progressive politics.
This week on “By Design,” Evans shared his ta
Starbucks' $100 million man shares his vision
Brian Niccol is on a mission to change how you get your morning coffee, and on this episode, we learn how in Niccol’s first public interview since taking over as Starbucks CEO a year ago.
We also run down the latest news on NikeSkims’ first lookbook, Apple’s Liquid Glass launch, and Amazon’s settlement over its deceptive UX — the “Iliad Flow.”
Then, we close the episode with a new game: Hot or
Why Trump just hired Airbnb’s cofounder, Figma’s big moment, and the Cracker Barrel logo that everyone hates
President Trump just created the National Design Studio and tapped Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia to lead the charge. Cracker Barrel has offended or enraged just about everyone with its new logo. Figma hit Wall Street with a bang.
It’s been a big month for design. And on this episode of By Design, hosts Liz Stinson and Mark Wilson give the rundown of the latest news before talking with Figma Chief
Inside Superman: How do you make another superhero movie stand out?
There have been 11 Superman films released in the past 50 years. How do you make a new one that stands out?
On this episode of By Design, hosts Liz Stinson and Mark Wilson interview the production designer for the latest Superman film, Beth Mickle. They discuss her collaborations with director James Gunn and share how she developed the latest Superman aesthetic. Plus, she explains why her team c
Why Michael Bierut still designs with a notebook and pencil
Welcome to the first episode of By Design, our new show for news, interviews, and criticism from the wide world of design.
Our first guest is Michael Bierut. He has been the brains behind some of the most iconic design work in recent history. Mastercard, Slack, Saks Fifth Avenue, and countless more came from Bierut’s desk as a partner at Pentagram.
Now, as Bierut steps into (semi) retirement, h
Introducing 'By Design' from Fast Company
Design is no longer just about aesthetics—it's shaping the way we live, work, and interact with the world. Join ‘Fast Company’ senior editor Liz Stinson and global design editor Mark Wilson as they dive into the latest innovations in the world of user experience and product and architectural design. ‘By Design’ focuses on the macro impacts of design trends, covering topics like the future of weara
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