IDEO was formed in 1991 through the merger of David Kelley Design, ID Two, and Matrix Product Design. David Kelley, who also founded Stanford’s d.school, built IDEO into arguably the most influential design consultancy of the past three decades.
The firm popularized the concept of design thinking — a methodology that starts with deep empathy for users and progresses through rapid prototyping and iteration. Companies from Apple to Procter & Gamble have adopted IDEO’s frameworks for their own innovation programs.
IDEO’s famous project list includes the first Apple mouse, the Palm V, and Steelcase’s Node classroom chair. But they’ve expanded far beyond physical products — today’s work covers service design, organizational design, and digital product development.
Their studios in Palo Alto, San Francisco, New York, London, Munich, Tokyo, and Shanghai house multidisciplinary teams of industrial designers, interaction designers, engineers, and business strategists. Projects typically involve intensive fieldwork where designers spend time observing real people in real contexts.
The consultancy has won more Industrial Design Excellence Awards than any other firm. They’ve also published several books on creative confidence and design methodology that have become required reading at business schools worldwide.
