What connects electric bikes, mobility systems, high-end wellbeing devices and robotics?

For Joachim, it’s the same mission: design technology that feels intuitive, human, and full of possibility.

With a career spanning Brussels, Copenhagen and London, and now as co-founder of FutureWave, Joachim has spent the past six years building a 25-strong design and engineering studio working across mobility, consumer tech and deep electronics. From shaping early concepts for startup disruptors to helping global brands reimagine their five-to-ten-year vision, his work sits at the intersection of creativity, engineering, and intuition.

In this episode of Why Design, Joachim joins host Chris Whyte to explore what happens when designers and engineers stop working in silos and start behaving like one organism. Together they unpack his “human generative design” philosophy, why intuition still matters in a world obsessed with data, and how FutureWave is helping clients design experiences fit for the next decade of hardware.

Don’t just listen. Go beyond the podcast.

Join the Why Design community → teamkodu.com/events

💡 What You’ll Learn

🧠 Why great design blends poetry and industry, and why Joachim believes designers act as the “glue” between disciplines.

🌍 How FutureWave breaks hardware silos to deliver desirability, feasibility and viability in one loop.

🔁 What “human generative design” looks like, and why iteration and cross-functional filtering beats isolated brainstorming.

🚲 Lessons from working with startups vs. corporates from rapid prototyping to de-risking long-term innovation.

🚆 Where hardware is heading from mobility transformation to miniaturised wellbeing tech and robotics.

💭 Why intuition still matters in a world dominated by metrics, risk models and strategy decks.

💬 Memorable Quotes

“Designers are never experts of anything… but they’re the glue.”

“Intuition helps you build dreams, strategy and engineering help you de-risk them.”

“You need diversity of minds to build a great product. It works like an organism.”

“Sometimes the market doesn’t know what it wants until you show it the experience.”

“The future of hardware is invisible tech; seamless, human, and meaningful.”

🔗 Resources & Links

🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube & Amazon → whydesign.club

👥 Join the Why Design community → teamkodu.com/events

🔗 Connect with Joachim → https://www.linkedin.com/in/joachim-froment-a1920456/

🌐 FutureWave → https://www.futurewave.eu/

📸 Instagram → @whydesignxkodu

🎥 Full episodes → YouTube.com/@whydesignpod

🔗 Follow Chris Whyte → linkedin.com/in/mrchriswhyte

About the Episode

Why Design is powered by Kodu, a specialist recruitment partner for the hardware and product-development industry.

Through candid conversations with designers, engineers, and creative leaders, we explore not just what they build, but why they build it; the belief, doubt, and persistence behind meaningful innovation.

About Kodu

Why Design is produced by Kodu, a recruitment partner for ambitious hardware brands, design consultancies, and product start-ups.

We help founders and teams hire top talent across industrial design, mechanical engineering, and product leadership.

🔗 Learn more → teamkodu.com