Interview
Meichen Liu
1 Congratulations on winning the MUSE Design Awards! Can you introduce yourself and share about what inspired you to pursue design as a career?
I’m a designer innovating the human-pet bond. My drive comes from translating silent emotional connections into tangible solutions. Nadoo embodies this: a minimalist shell encasing precise tech, making safety both visible and touchable.
2 What does being recognized in the MUSE Design Awards mean to you?
It affirms that the symbiotic design of tech and empathy transcends species. Nadoo redefines "responsible companionship"—translating cold engineering into warmth through intentional form and interaction.
3 How has this achievement impacted your career, team, or agency, and what opportunities has it brought so far?
The award catalyzed partnerships with animal NGOs, including the development of low-power chips for strays. User demand also drives modular expansion, with health tracking via swappable sensors coming soon.
4 What role does experimentation play in your creative process? Can you share an example?
Experimentation balances logic and empathy. We tested 120 acoustic scenarios with veterinarians to finalize 8-12kHz alerts—sufficiently noticeable yet non-threatening to pets’ hearing sensitivity.
5 What's the most unusual source of inspiration you've ever drawn from for a project?
Squirrels hiding nuts taught me ‘olfactory logic’. Their spatial memory inspired Nadoo’s signal system—using light pulse intensity and sound gradients as pets’ navigational cues.
6 What’s one thing you wish more people understood about the design process?
Subtraction requires more courage than addition. We stripped non-core features like temperature monitoring to prioritize battery life—proving simplicity fuels reliability.
7 How do you navigate the balance between meeting client expectations and staying true to your ideas?
Data bridges visions. Clients questioned geofencing accuracy until we shared 300 field tests showing 0.5m error margins. Numbers proved aesthetics and utility can align.
8 What were the challenges you faced while working on your award-winning design, and how did you overcome them?
Material paradox: Making PBT waterproof yet acoustically permeable. Solution: 0.1mm laser-pierced micro-holes boosting speaker volume by 40%—invisible texture, audible breakthrough.
9 How do you recharge your creativity when you hit a creative block?
Reconnecting with users breaks blocks. Watching elders struggle with apps led us to streamline geofencing from 7 steps to 3, adding voice guidance—design must respect all generations.
10 What personal values or experiences do you infuse into your designs?
Tech should recede into life. Nadoo’s pebble-like curves make it a natural accessory, not a ‘tracker’—my belief that caring technology must be humble and harmonious.
11 What is an advice that you would you give to aspiring designers aiming for success?
Design is like calibrating GPS: find True North (core needs) first. We initially overloaded Nadoo with features, then realized ‘security’ was the only coordinate that mattered.
12 If you could collaborate with any designer, past or present, who would it be and why?
Naoto Fukasawa's 'without thought' philosophy aligns with Nadoo—technology should adapt to pets' instincts, not force behavioral changes. A master of invisible innovation.
13 What's one question you wish people would ask you about your work, and what's your answer?
I hope people would ask me "How do you make tech gain pets' trust?" I would then say that texture and sound design matter. Nadoo's matte finish mimics fur touch, and alerts avoid irritating frequencies—tech becomes a 'silent companion' they willingly embrace.
