Domestic Oracles
The exhibition with Alessi during Design Week 2026
Product & Furniture Design students from Istituto Marangoni Milano Design, in collaboration with Alessi.
In collaboration with Alessi, students from the Master’s in Product & Furniture Design envision a new generation of domestic objects capable of embodying artificial intelligence, translating it into a tangible and perceptible presence. Not tools that inform or instruct, but silent companions that integrate into the rhythms of the home, responding to the environment through light, vibration, reflection, and kinetic gesture.
The project Domestic Oracles explores the poetic dimension of design: how an object can offer symbolic and emotional feedback without speaking the language of data. These artefacts do not communicate through screens or notifications, but through their enigmatic, refined, and atmospheric presence. Each object becomes a small domestic oracle: something that observes, perceives, and returns meaning in a subtle, almost imperceptible way.
The aim is to transform AI from an abstract and invisible entity into a tangible domestic companion, capable of enriching the atmosphere of everyday spaces and revealing new forms of relationship between people and intelligent systems. An exploration of how beauty, empathy, and material innovation can redefine the very meaning of technological presence in daily life.
Domestic artifacts translate artificial intelligence into physical presence, responding through light, movement and subtle sensory interactions.
Objects communicate without screens or data, offering emotional and symbolic feedback through atmosphere, materiality and refined design language.
Artificial intelligence becomes a silent companion, integrating into everyday spaces and shaping new relationships between people and responsive systems.
CONNEXIO
Connexio is one of the “domestic oracles” designed for Alessi. Developed in collaboration with the Italian Institute of Technology by Kothari Arihant, an Indian student from the Master in Product & Furniture Design, it gives physical form to an artificial intelligence agent capable of interpreting the quality of human relationships. In an era where the gap between digital connection and emotional connection is increasingly evident, Connexio emerges as a relational technology that makes the invisible visible. The AI agent detects metadata related to a person’s social interactions, interprets their quality and intensity, and translates them into a system of slow, progressive transformations inspired by the life cycles of a flower. The result is an intimate and evocative visual language that encourages a deeper and more intentional awareness of human connection.
MOMENTO
Momento is one of the “Domestic Oracles” designed by students for Alessi. It embodies an artificial intelligence agent conceived to support emotional wellbeing.In an era defined by constant stimuli and invasive interfaces, this object presents itself as a quiet presence, capable of interpreting the user’s inner state and responding through light, rhythm and vibration.More than a tool, it is a contemporary ritual: an invitation to slow down, reconnect with oneself, and transform the domestic space into a place of listening and reflection.
PROFUMINO
Designed as an intelligent scent system, it listens to the user’s emotional state and responds with a tailored olfactory composition, selecting what is needed rather than what is desired. In a domestic landscape saturated with visual and digital stimuli, Profumino introduces a quieter, more instinctive form of interaction, where scent becomes a medium for emotional regulation and wellbeing. Through voice recognition and AI-driven interpretation, it diffuses fragrances that support energy, focus, relaxation or comfort, transforming the home into a responsive environment that nurtures both mind and body.
PRIMA
Prima reimagines the act of waking up as a deeply personal and sensory experience. Rather than relying on repetitive alarms and rigid schedules, it interprets the user’s physical and environmental state to create a tailored awakening ritual. In a context where mornings are often stressful and disconnected from individual needs, Prima introduces a more intuitive approach, orchestrating light, sound and airflow into a gradual and responsive sequence. By sensing sleep quality, body conditions and ambient factors, it adapts its behaviour to gently guide the user into wakefulness, transforming a daily necessity into a moment of care and awareness. More than a device, Prima becomes a silent companion, turning waking up into a choreographed experience that reconnects the body with its surroundings and redefines the beginning of the day.
MADDY
Maddy explores the emotional power of memory through a nostalgic and intimate interaction. Inspired by the symbolic language of everyday objects, it transforms a familiar container into a portal to personal recollections. In fast-paced daily routines, where moments of reflection are often lost, Maddy invites users to reconnect with their past through surprise and discovery. Each time the object is opened, it reveals a randomly selected image from the user’s digital archive, creating an unexpected and emotional encounter that mirrors the spontaneity of memory itself. More than an object, it is a nostalgic ritual: a quiet gesture that reactivates emotions, reinforces identity, and turns everyday interaction into a meaningful connection with one’s own story.
