IKEA has imagined a future kitchen that looks to the past for inspiration. The project, , is a collaboration between the furniture brand, design agency Ideo and students from Lund University and Eindhoven University of Technology.
Students were asked to submit ideas for a future kitchen that considers the changes that are expected to come in the next 10 years, such as more people migrating to cities, smaller living spaces, water shortages and less meat-based diets. Four were then selected to intern at Ideo, to develop the project and build a full-scale model of the kitchen of the future. It was launched during Milan Design Week and will remain on show at Ikea Temporary, a six-month installation exploring life around the kitchen.
The kitchen is a perfect combination of future imagined technologies and past techniques to create a space where food waste is minimized and the Internet of Things can truly shine.
While we often see smart refrigerators as in concept kitchens, IKEA and the designer believe that fridges will become obsolete in the future due to their energy inefficiency. Rather, people will store food much as how they have done so in the past—using materials that are naturally insular, such as cooling ceramic, to keep items as fresh as possible. People will no longer buy groceries on a weekly basis, but with automatic delivery from drones and the like, fresh food will be just as easy to get on demand. The design also promotes a mindful way of storage, with clear containers that display the state of food and serve as a visual reminder to eat before it goes bad.
Another waste reducing measure is the unique sink that divides water into two categories: black water and grey water. The black water is contaminated and cannot be reused, so will go down one section of the sink to sewerage pipes to be treated, while the grey water is not contaminated and can be used again to clean dishes or to water plants.
The designers also integrated technologies that are on the fringe now but which they envision will be mainstream in future kitchen environments. The smart table will be able to scan ingredients on the table and suggest recipes or pairings. For instance, a person could put whatever was in their pantry that they needed that was about to expire—say cheese, tomatoes and eggs—and receive a recipe from the table on how to best to use the ingredients.
Although the kitchen is purely conceptual, the 18-month project will be put to use by IKEA to inform future products.