Matt Johnson

Matt Johnson

London, England, United Kingdom
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About

As the CEO and Co-Founder of LAIIER, I lead a company revolutionizing how commercial and…

Articles by Matt

  • Building a Bridge from Smart Surfaces to the Cloud with Henkel
    Apr 2, 2020

    Building a Bridge from Smart Surfaces to the Cloud with Henkel

    Yesterday I was excited to be able to share a tiny hint of what Bare Conductive is up to with Henkel (check out their…

    11 Comments
  • Artists at our technical frontier
    May 17, 2016

    Artists at our technical frontier

    Last week I wrote about how our community has surprised us with the way that it used pieces of the world around them as…

    1 Comment
  • Material insights from a dedicated community
    May 10, 2016

    Material insights from a dedicated community

    I often get asked "what is the craziest thing that someone has done with Electric Paint?" Good question. There has been…

    3 Comments
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Activity

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Experience

  • LAIIER.IO Graphic

    LAIIER.IO

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    London, UK

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    London, United Kingdom

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    London, United Kingdom

Education

  • Imperial College London Graphic

    Imperial College London

  • Activities and Societies: Phi Beta Kappa Honor Council Member and Co-Chair Campus Design Review Board student representative

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Publications

  • Embracing Material Complexity

    Distance Magazine

    Embracing Material Complexity explores a group of designers engaging in fundamental material innovation. The essay proposes that designers are in a unique position to discover, embrace and exploit the complexity of matter that was carefully engineered out of industrial production in the 20th century.

    The projects covered in the essay demonstrate a combination of design methodology, easy access to technical information and exhaustive prototyping, designers are able to deliver innovative…

    Embracing Material Complexity explores a group of designers engaging in fundamental material innovation. The essay proposes that designers are in a unique position to discover, embrace and exploit the complexity of matter that was carefully engineered out of industrial production in the 20th century.

    The projects covered in the essay demonstrate a combination of design methodology, easy access to technical information and exhaustive prototyping, designers are able to deliver innovative and unexpected results beyond objects and into the fundamental materials from which they are constructed.

    This essay was written for third issue of Distance Magazine (Distance 03). Distance was a quarterly journal with long, well-researched essays about design and technology. It was a publication filled with authors to which I cannot hold a candle. You should go read it all.


    See publication

  • Personality, Physiology and The Automobile

    Dissertation: Royal College of Art

    In 1885 Karl Benz invented the automobile. 119 years later, there were 250,851,833 vehicles registered in the United States alone. In this dissertation I argue that this rabid adoption is a reflection of a unique and deep connection that can exist between driver and vehicle.

    I argue that the rabid adoption and mythological status of the vehicle in western society is partially a result of the deep personal connection that many drivers feel with their vehicles. I believe that vehicle…

    In 1885 Karl Benz invented the automobile. 119 years later, there were 250,851,833 vehicles registered in the United States alone. In this dissertation I argue that this rabid adoption is a reflection of a unique and deep connection that can exist between driver and vehicle.

    I argue that the rabid adoption and mythological status of the vehicle in western society is partially a result of the deep personal connection that many drivers feel with their vehicles. I believe that vehicle ownership has a more significant meaning to drivers than mere convenience and that the owner-object relationship between driver and car is unique.

    To examine this concept, I first explore the history of the automobile; it’s rabid early adoption, and examples of its use as a personal and cultural signifier. I then discuss the automobile and the driver in a more contemporary context where it plays a role in contemporary art and culture. Finally I explore the concept that there is a unique pseudo-physical connection between driver and vehicle. I investigate this connection in the context of the psychological concepts of body schema, and proprioception while reviewing topical innovations in the automotive industry.

    I hope to demonstrate that we develop a unique and passionate connection with our vehicles because we begin to incorporate them into ourselves, not just as a piece of clothing, but as an actual extension of our bodies and psyches, potentially changing our behavior and attitudes.

  • Big Drinks and Big Cars: An Investigation Into Vehicular Moral Hazard

    Thesis: Colorado College Economics and Business Department

    This undergraduate thesis examines the relationship between driver behaviour and vehicle type. The research looks for an effect known as moral hazard. Defined generally as a situation in which the presence of protection increases risk-taking behavior.

    Moral hazard effects in the context of insurance and automotive safety innovations have been studied at length and are well established. In this research I ask the question of whether the vehicle type itself can elicit such morally…

    This undergraduate thesis examines the relationship between driver behaviour and vehicle type. The research looks for an effect known as moral hazard. Defined generally as a situation in which the presence of protection increases risk-taking behavior.

    Moral hazard effects in the context of insurance and automotive safety innovations have been studied at length and are well established. In this research I ask the question of whether the vehicle type itself can elicit such morally hazardous behavior. Whether a vehicle type effect exists is a difficult question to answer. A driver’s behavior and choices are the result of a multitude of exogenous and endogenous variables.

    I model this complex situation by simplifying driver behavior into my counterfactual model examining the relationship between fatality rate, percent of speed limit, vehicle type and blood alcohol level at the time of a fatal accident as reported by the United State’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

    After understanding some of the choices that drivers make on a theoretical level, it was possible to use an empirical model to isolate the potential effects of a vehicle type variable, within a real driving environment. The strongest evidence of moral hazard were found from the 1999-year data, suggesting that an increase in the gross weight of a vehicle was correlated with an increase in alcohol consumption immediately preceding the fatal accident.

Honors & Awards

  • Dissertation Distinction

    Critical and Historical Studies Department

    The achievement of a distinction mark for a dissertation insures that a copy of the work is permanently kept in the Royal College of Art library.

  • Kenneth J. and Elizabeth Hare Curran Award

    Economics and Business Deparment

    The Kenneth J. and Elizabeth Hare Curran Award is presented as recognition to the outstanding senior graduate of the Economics Department.

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