Apartments that change at the touch of a button

Could this really be the future of apartment living? Understanding the need to add flexibility to contemporary living spaces, ORI offers an easier way to change them from bedroom to living room to study and beyond.

This startup, born out of MIT Media Lab’s CityHome project, uses architectural robots to change the shape and purpose of an apartment’s internal spaces. These ‘dynamic environments’ create living spaces that feel larger. Check out the video.

Introducing Ori - www.orisystems.com from Ori on Vimeo.

Architecture and furniture combined, ORI takes its name from the Japanese art of paper folding, Origami (obvious now we’ve pointed it out, we know) and features pre-set options for each configuration. Want to fold your bed away in the morning? Click, done.

Motion sensors light up the control which, when not in use, doesn’t look like a control at all. Motors then glide the unit into the selected position.

We’ve seen a few examples of the adjustable apartment approach in the past, some good, some bad. What’s clever about ORI is the automation which takes the physical effort out of the transformation. After all, don’t we just want everything to happen at the touch of a button?