Adam Bates

Adam Bates

Update: 2025-07-15
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Description

Adam Bates, design director of consumer tech company Nothing, visits the studio to discuss the difficulties of innovating in the smartphone category, the perils of spec creep, the joy of design references from the past, and the importance of carving out your own niche.


Adam's picks for his crit were:

Best design: Headphone (1)

Worst design: A vacuum cleaner for the Japanese market

Most successful design: Dyson Supersonic and Phone (1)

Most impactful feedback: “Carve your niche” and “You look like you're having too much fun”

Dream design: A camera


The Crit

Graphics: Leonhard Rothmoser


Music: Yuri Suzuki and Team Suzuki

This episode of The Crit was recorded at KEF Music Gallery, London


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Adam Bates

Adam Bates