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ABOUT
Jifei Ou
I am an inventor, entrepreneur, and multidisciplinary researcher. I am the founder and CEO of OPT Industries. The company specializes in creating innovative soft good materials with previously unattainable geometries, and properties for applications in medical devices, cosmetics, interior design, and beyond.
Before founding OPT, I worked at the MIT Media Lab as a researcher. My focus was on developing mechanical metamaterials through computational design, machine learning and novel manufacturing processes. I led projects that explored biomimicry and bio-derived materials to design stimuli-responsive packaging, garments, and furniture.
An adventurer at heart, I was born and raised in southwest China and have brought my design practice and scientific research to Asia, Europe, and the U.S. My work has been published in numerous academic conferences, recognized by design competitions, and granted dozens of U.S. patents.
I have an MS and PhD from the MIT Media Lab in the U.S. and a Diplom in Design from the Hochschule für Gestaltung Offenbach in Germany.