Designing For Desire

In “Ontological Designing”, Anne-Marie Willis introduces the concept of Ontological Design, articulating that “we design our world, while our world acts back on us and designs us.” Ontological Design describes the relation act of shaping and being shaped by what we build.

We are surrounded by remarkable technological advancements, advanced tooling and infrastructure. However, without accounting for culture or desire, these tools fall flat, lacking the spark that transforms pure functionality into meaningful creations. Successful design goes beyond the superficiality of aesthetics and the pragmatism of functionality—... See more

"We're not trying to please everybody. We're not cooking for critics. I cook for customers. If I started cooking for critics, I'd probably be really miserable." - David Chang

We don’t just want to be a utility. We want to be something that brings emotion.

“Connectivity between restaurants and guests has eroded. There’s a difference between knowing it’s someone’s birthday and being able to contact that person and invite them in for a drink.” - Ben Leventhal

Blackbird transforms traditional loyalty systems and fosters a more interactive and valuable relationship between consumers and businesses.