Jinsoo An is a Korean American designer, researcher and technologist dedicated to enhancing human relations

He leads visionary solutions around changing behaviors, emerging cultures and converging technologies by interweaving wellness, mobility and media.

His expertise lies in developing emotionally intelligent platforms which cultivate a symbiotic relationship between people, tools and spaces.

For over 13 years, he has been building, scaling, revamping and diversifying products through multidisciplinary practices—including UX design, behavioral research, anthropology, sensory science, growth strategy, risk mitigation and foresight. He specializes in several form factors and their software experiences stemming from mobile, wearable and IoT devices, blockchain, and sensorial apparatus.

He is interested in finding effective means of facilitating social interaction and emotion that offer purpose, meaning and sustainability. He values persistent curiosity and believes one should never settle for the status quo.

Notable accolades

Profiled in Wired, VICE, BBC, Forbes, Business Insider, The Telegraph, NPR, New York Times and more
Presented at TEDx, Google X, Google Food Lab, UCLA, Impossible Foods, Institute for the Future, Sony and more
Featured in the best seller Gastrophysics: The New Science of Eating by Charles Spence
Named by J. Walter Thompson Intelligence as a leading influencer in emerging tech
Previously Product Owner of Supply Chain Management Cohort at Google Food Lab Accelerator
Appeared on a multi-part science documentary, Rêver le futur: L'alimentation du futur, syndicated on Planète+ and Netflix worldwide
Mentioned in textbooks such as Context: The Effects of Environment on Product Design and Evaluation by Dr. Herbert L. Meiselman and Multisensory Packaging: Designing New Product Experiences by Carlos Velasco
Exhibited at GLOBALE: Exo-Evolution curated by Peter Weibel at ZKM in Germany
Permanent installation in Thinking Space Technology at Futurium museum in Berlin, Germany

From past through present

Prior to immigrating to California in 1995, Jinsoo was raised on a small family-owned farm in South Korea, just a few miles away from the DMZ. Surrounded by wet rice fields and unpaved roads where an endless chain of tanks roared, he often waved his arms and shouted, “M.R.E.!.” A friendly soldier in a clattering tank would pop out to throw him a bag of what seemed like a Happy Meal from outer space.

Through this curiosity-ridden environment juxtaposed with hanging fermented soybeans, neighborly farmers, home-brew games and gadget teardowns, he developed a deep fascination for human ingenuity and connection.

Decades later, his curiosity gradually expanded to crafting tools and services across 20 industries such as food, wellness, agriculture, gaming, sports, consumer electronics, automotive, finance and energy—reaching hundreds of millions of people around the globe.

In 2013, he became involved in a series of experiments that decoded how humans interpret senses and emotions. Subsequently, he founded Project Nourished, a public-benefit initiative with a goal of diversifying methods of consumption and maximizing therapeutic qualities of food, beverage and medicine through integration of mixed reality, embedded tableware and sensory apparatus.

During his spare time, he loves inspiring people of all ages by speaking to them and educating them about the human condition of today and tomorrow. His favorite themes include play, hyperreality, fandom, commensality, social isolation, aging, community reintegration and behavioral economics.

Periodically, he engages with local and global communities to strengthen public–private partnership to improve the role of technology in people’s lives.

He likes obscure films and enjoys dabbling with novel, antiquated cameras and audio gears.

Please feel free to reach out about any inquiries.

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