Hi, I'm Phnam.
Hi, I'm Mardis.
And we're the hosts of Future Future, where two designers talk about the future of everything.
We're in the business of turning science fiction into reality for a better future.
And today, we're going to talk about the future of airlines, and specifically business class.
So Mardis, have you flown business class before?
I have! It's...business, like from the 80s I suppose.
So not super impressed, right?
No, I mean a little more room.
But nothing really to justify a ticket that costs eight times what coach does.
Yeah.
So here's what we're going to talk about during this episode:
is how we can make business class a lot more exciting, a lot more in alignment with people's expectations of what business is.
The people traveling in business class have changed drastically.
Back in the day, it was typically middle aged, older people dressed in a suit with certain business expectations and behaviors.
And now, you have people who are quite casual, walking in sneakers and in colors. And also conducting business.
And business is something that is very much about networking, about connections, about
privacy, about productivity in the air.
And we want airlines to be at the forefront of that.
So what Nonfiction is here to do is to reinstate pleasure in flight.
And we're doing this in business class through design changes that we want to integrate.
And they're design changes that don't necessarily cost a lot more than what you have today.
But they're done in a clever way so the experience is so much better than what it is today.
So what if we got rid of those old color palettes that we've seen in airlines forever?
What if we changed it and added better colors, more comfortable materials,
more things that were conducive to the energetic lifestyle that business people have today?
So let's get rid of that drab gray and blue and black
and leather seats that fold down and doesn't do anything else, and that weird light that's always on the side.
We need more than that.
We have expectations that go beyond that.
Technology can help with that. Material science can help with that.
The science of color can make the whole experience so much more interesting
and pleasurable and perhaps more productive than the way you work on planet Earth.
We have access to high performance fabrics and different types of materials.
3D meshes and things like that that can help with keeping the place cleaner
and also making it more comfortable to the body and to the eyes.
And when we talk about comfort, of course we're still going to have the lay down beds so that people can relax and stuff.
But one of the things we integrated was: not only do we have a screen but we split time,
just like you and I split our time when we are doing business and play.
You have a little bit of play and a little bit of business.
So maybe you're watching the movie screen, then you turn your chair ninety degrees
and then you can start working on the laptop.
So it's dividing those work and play spaces.
And lighting is very important here, too.
You have this beautiful ambient light in the cabin,
and on top of that you have a task light that is really directed to you and focused on what you're doing at that moment.
And part of it is about connectivity, too.
We really want those people to be comfortable
and bring whatever device they have, wirelessly charge it, stay connected on all different levels,
have their headphones and all the little things that they need to make life just a little more comfortable,
and easily do business.
So instead of being handed out an amenity kit with, you know, the toothbrush and the socks they always give you in business class,
what if part of these tools that are given to you are reusable using beautiful materials like copper,
which also happens to be antibacterial?
That would really help with the sustainability story; reusing materials from one passenger to the next.
When we talk about privacy and service,
these are really really important parts of the experience when your'e traveling for business.
So nowadays everybody's on a Zoom call, making
video conferencing and things like that.
You just can't do that in your seats.
So we've integrated the idea of a phone booth where it has sound protection.
You can get a little bit of quiet focus time with your colleagues anywhere in the world from up there.
Yeah, and there would be baffle technology and
noise canceling that would be very conducive to a high quality call from the sky.
So if you've ever been in a very high level business meeting, you know, all these engagements,
these contractual agreements, start with something a little more casual and mundane.
It's almost like having a cocktail with someone, maybe having dinner, and meeting for coffee.
It's not right to the business.
And we want to integrate this into business class.
This is really hugely important for developing relationships.
So how do we do it?
We integrated...a bar! [laughs]
Which is great, because whether you want a cocktail or even a mocktail,
it's all about hanging out with somebody and talking shop without all the pressure.
That's really opening an environment to communicate on a whole different level.
You're in an airplane for five hours.
And you do not want to stop business for those five hours.
Let's make it as useful in the air to connect with people as it is on the ground.
And the idea of a bar is nothing new.
Back in the 60s TWA, PanAm, all the service was very much focused on that social hour.
So what we want to do is update all of this and make it very much conducive to better business and a greater time up in the air.
So the takeaway of this episode about business class redesign is that business has changed,
technology related to business has changed,
and airlines should be on par with it or ahead of it.
Because we want people who travel business to feel like they're traveling in the future for the few hours that they're in the air.
So with that, we want to thank you for joining us on this future of flight through business class journey today.
And we look forward to seeing your comments below and questions.
And tell us what you like and what excites you.
So until next time, take care.
Bye. Bye!