Calm Technology is a process for designing technology that works with human attention, instead of against it.
Principles of Calm Technology
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Require the smallest possible amount of attention
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Inform and create calm
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Make use of the periphery
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Amplify the best of technology and the best of humanity
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Communicate without speaking
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Still work when it fails
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The minimum tech needed to solve the problem
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Respect social norms.
History
2007
While writing a thesis on the iPhone, designer and researcher A. Case discovers a small set of Xerox PARC papers from the 1990s describing a future of ubiquitous computing and Calm Technology.
2010
Case starts lecturing about Calm Technology worldwide, building upon the late Xerox Parc researcher Mark Weiser's original papers. Case creates the Principles of Calm Technology and a website dedicated to Calm Technology in 2014.
2015
In 2015 Case publishes the seminal book Calm Technology: Principles and Patterns for Non-Intrusive Design. The book inspires a 5-year book tour that lasted until March 2020.
2020
Calm Technology collaborations inspire the development of multiple products, including award-winning Kyoto, Japan-based startup mui Lab, Inc.
In 2020, the book Calm Technology is translated into Japanese and published by BNN.
2023
Amber Case joins the Metagovernance Project, a non-profit laboratory for digital governance, as a Research Director. Calm Tech Institute begins incubation by Metagov, and Metagov researchers begin providing feedback on the first drafts of Calm Tech Certified™. Metagov's research may be supported here.
2024
Case launches the Calm Tech Institute in 2024 at the WSJ's Future of Everything Conference. Later that year, Calm Tech Institute introduces Calm Tech Certified™, a standard for aligning attention with technology through periphery engagement, tactility, material harmony and durability.
2025
Calm Tech Certified™ gains adoption by companies around the the world, showcasing and influencing products across multiple verticals. Calm Tech Institute is featured in publications around the world, including Kyoto Journal, Wired Japan and UK's Idler Magazine. The team adds Mika Lessmann as CTI's first Design Fellow.
2026
mui Lab, Inc.'s January CES Show booth features Calm Technology® to critical acclaim. Calm Tech Institute looks forward to its third year as an organization.
Books
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Calm Technology: Principles and Patterns for Non-Intrusive Design
2014, CreateSpace
An Illustrated Dictionary of Cyborg Anthropology
Author Amber Case expands on ideas first introduced by researchers at Xerox PARC in 1995 with a series of principles, patterns and examples of how they apply to our current technology landscape, especially the Internet of Things.
2025, Penguin Random House
Our cell phones, cars and laptops have turned us into cyborgs. Technology is intertwined with almost every aspect of our lives. How do our tools influence the way we interact with the world? How is technology changing the way we work, live and play?
Teach kids to build a healthy relationship with the technology in their lives! This book was made to help kids aged 5-9 (and their grownups) reflect on their relationship with technology and learn to embrace the benefits of balance by being unplugged every now and then.
2015, O'Reilly Books
A Kids Book About Technology
2018, O'Reilly Books
Designing with Sound: Fundamentals for Products and Services
Just as visual designers have a set of benchmarks and a design language to guide their work, this book provides a toolkit for the auditory experience, improving collaboration for a wide variety of stakeholders, from product developers to composers, user experience designers to architects.
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