A gentle information interface that blends into the space
A wooden rectangular block, about 70 cm wide, with a simple look. At first glance, it looks like nothing more than a piece of interior decor made of wood. But touch it with your hand, and an LED display appears on the surface.
mui, a smart device combining natural wood and technology.
It contains an in-house-developed wood-grain touch panel and display and a computer with an OS. Touch the surface, and it receives weather forecasts and the latest news, and can also control home appliances remotely and link with other applications. After you use it, the display disappears and it blends into the room as warm wooden decor.
It is made by mui Lab, Inc.
The company was founded through the in-house venture program as a subsidiary of NISSHA Co., Ltd. (NISSHA), headquartered in Kyoto. We interviewed Representative Director Kazunori Oki about the vision behind the product, how it was developed, and the outlook ahead.
Advances in technology have made our lives very convenient. All kinds of products connect to the internet, and it has even been said that the number of devices worldwide will reach 50 billion by 2020. We will be surrounded by a great deal of technology not only at the office but at home too.
Amid this, mui offers “technology that stays close to people.” It is made of natural wood, the display has a warm wood grain, and only the information needed for daily life is shown. Oki says, “By placing mui in a space where information, nature, and people intersect, we create an opportunity to rethink their relationships. By blending technology well into people’s lives, we achieve a rich way of living.” A gentle product that does not feel like cold technology, it asks us about new ways of living.
Why choose wood, which is technically hard to develop with
After gaining experience in business development and sales in Tokyo, Oki worked as an expatriate (sales) at NISSHA’s US base. In May 2015, when NISSHA exhibited for the first time at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) in New York, Oki presented Wall Tile, a new business concept positioned as the forerunner of mui.
Oki felt a real response from the high praise of the media. In February 2016, with approval under the in-house venture program, Oki launched the project in earnest with Nobuyasu Hirobe, now a co-founder.
There are many devices operated by touch, but mui’s feature is its use of natural wood. At first they used glass, artificial marble, and other materials, but when they presented prototypes, users rated “wood” the highest. “We didn’t want to make something that already exists; we wanted to make something distinctive that had never existed before.” From there, development focused on wood as the material.
But a problem stood in the way.
Natural wood varies in quality and appearance. It changes easily with humidity and is hard to handle, and supply is limited and prices are high. For many reasons, it was an undesirable material. And because it was unknown territory, a project no one had attempted before, the purpose of development was not clear. Concerns arose within the team, and Oki looks back: “For a while, the organization was on the verge of collapse.”
Believing they needed time to face the product, the development team held a retreat in August 2017 to deepen the concept. They asked Hida no Mori de Kuma wa Odoru Co., Ltd. (*1) to facilitate, and to find out “why wood is good,” they immersed themselves in the forests of Hida and listened to people involved with wood.
What the retreat revealed was that “people feel the appeal and value of wood in its look and feel.” Looking back at mui’s features, it uses natural wood for the display device and is operated by actually touching a touch panel. “That was when we first became convinced that wood is the material that brings out the best of mui.” With a clear sense of purpose and conviction, the development team made a fresh start. In October 2017, they founded mui Lab, Inc. Currently about 10 people, including Oki, are involved in development.
Bringing technology that stays close to people to the world
After its fresh start, mui came to be recognized around the world.
In November 2018, mui exhibited at CES 2019 and received an Innovation Award (Smart Home category). From October to December 2018, a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter raised about 115,000 dollars (about 12 million yen), exceeding its target of 100,000 dollars. “The challenge on Kickstarter also led us to discover a new concept for mui: creating precious time spent with family.” In January 2019, it was also chosen by Kickstarter for “Best of Kickstarter.”
The company has set two goals for the future.
The first is to create a business model with stable revenue. The second is to sign contracts with companies and apply the technology to their solutions. The company will roll out its patented “operation display panel system,” also used in mui, to develop new products with companies around the world. In fact, in April 2019 it announced the concept model “Memories of a Pillar” in collaboration with the major electronics company Wacom Co., Ltd. Talks are also under way with companies making hardware, such as car interiors and smart speakers.
The name mui, for both the company and the product, carries the philosophy of “mui shizen” (acting without artifice, following the natural way of things). Technology that stays close to people’s lives will surely enrich lifestyles around the world.
(*1) Hida no Mori de Kuma wa Odoru Co., Ltd. (known as Hidakuma). A company that connects forestry, the local community, and creators around the world to create new value in the forests of Hida. It runs FabCafe Hida, a café for making things, and retreat programs for companies and organizations.
https://hidakuma.com/
Interview date: May 28, 2019
(Interview and text: Hideki Yamamoto)