RCA 2026: Service Design Show
About this Event
This seminar event brings together practitioners and researchers from across sectors to reflect on the forces shaping the future of service design through lightning talks and panel discussions. The event provides a space for considering where service design practice is headed.
OUR SPEAKERS & THEMES:
Qian Sun & Carolyn Runcie
Qian Sun, Professor of Service Design and Head of Programme at the Royal College of Art, and Carolyn Runcie, Tutor on the MA in Service Design programme, will present insights from their recent research with RCA Service Design alumni. Their session will explore how service design is enacted in practice and ask: where is the discipline going, and how will it get there?
Joe Ferry
Creative leader and experience designer, Joe Ferry will reflect on the positioning of service design and the potential it has yet to fulfil, drawing on his extensive experience leading design and guest experience for brands including LVMH’s Belmond, InterContinental Hotels Group, Etihad Airways, and Virgin Atlantic.
Dr Viktor Bedö
Service Design Strategist and Associate Lecturer at the RCA, Viktor will explore predictive models and agentic AI in service systems, drawing on his research on Machine Teaching Commons and introducing Gold Standard Small Data to re-centre human and contextual intelligence in AI-enhanced infrastructures.
Dr Richard Atkinson
Senior Tutor on the RCA Service Design programme, Richard will explore the role and limitations of service design in responding to climate change and other urgent challenges, with a particular focus on power within design.
Judah Armani
Educator and practitioner, Judah will share perspectives on civics, design, and education, drawing on his work in homelessness and criminal justice.
Nicolás Rebolledo
Strategic service designer and educator, Nicolás will explore how AI reshapes service design practice through two lenses: designing intelligent systems and designing the boundaries around them. He argues that the key skill is not technical fluency, but judgment, knowing where human outcomes must remain non-negotiable.
LOCATION:
Gorvy Theatre, RCA Battersea
Riverside, 1 Hester Road
London SW11 4AY
TIMETABLE:
15:30 – Opening remarks by the programme team
Talks By
15:40 – Qian Sun & Carolyn Runcie
15:50 – Joe Ferry
16:00 – Dr Viktor Bedö
16:10 – Dr Richard Atkinson
16:20 – Judah Armani
16:30 – Nicolás Rebolledo
16:40 – Q&A session with all speakers
17:00 – Closing remarks
We look forward to having you join us at the Gorvy Theatre for an afternoon of insight, dialogue, and perspective on the evolving role of service design today.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
