Modem’s Astin le Clercq on building a design studio with an expiry date

Most design studios aim to build something permanent, but Modem has deliberately set itself an end date. Founded as a hybrid think tank and design studio, the practice will close in 2030, creating what co-founder Astin le Clercq describes as “a time-bound experiment” that encourages risk-taking and intentional project selection. Operating with a team of five generalists and a decentralised network of academics, technologists and designers, Modem bridges speculative research with commercial reality for clients including OpenAI, Google and Chanel. Rather than chasing traditional agency growth, they’re exploring what a contemporary design practice can look like when freed from the pressure of indefinite survival – turning temporality into a creative constraint that shapes everything from their collaborative approach to their open-source product development. TBI: Hey Astin – how’s the year been for you and the team? ALC: It’s been a really interesting year. Like every year in this evolving landscape, each one feels totally different, and this one was no exception. With technology reshaping itself at exponential speed, adaptation has become constant, and our clients in every sector are confronting that reality too. One big highlight earlier this year was the launch of Dream Recorder, an open-source hardware product which really made some waves and got a lot of attention. We’d been working on it for about nine months with some amazing collaborators, and seeing it so well-received was definitely a proud moment for us. On top of that, we have a few more exciting projects rolling out in the last quarter, making it a truly eventful year.