Dr Matteo Zallio
- Assistant Professor in Design
- Governing Body Fellow - Hughes Hall
- Executive Director Centre for Inclusive Design Futures
- Co-Director Inclusive Design Group
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About
Dr Matteo Zallio is an Assistant Professor in Design at the University of Cambridge, Department of Architecture, Executive Director of the Centre for Inclusive Design Futures, and Co-Director of the Inclusive Design Group in the Department of Engineering. His work explores how inclusive design and artificial intelligence can converge to create ethical, human-responsive experiences across digital and physical environments.
His research focuses on emerging technologies that respond to people’s diverse sensory, cognitive, and physical needs, translating evidence into more human-responsive products, services, buildings, and systems. Alongside his academic leadership, Dr Zallio brings extensive industry experience. He is the founder of the Metavethics Institute, a think tank dedicated to researching and developing ethical futures in phygital environments.
He previously served as Global Accessibility Lead and Senior Experience Researcher at Autodesk and has advised S&P 500 companies, including Amazon, Silicon Valley venture capital firms such as Plug and Play, and thousands of start-ups on inclusive innovation, design thinking, accessibility, and responsible AI. His work has informed design strategies across architecture, engineering, healthcare, education, and digital technology.
A Fulbright Research Fellow at Stanford University, Dr Zallio also was previously an A. Graves Research Fellow at Technological University Dublin. He is passionate about helping organisations transform complex challenges into inclusive opportunities by embedding ethical approaches, human-responsive research, and evidence-based design into products, services, environments, and policy.
He teaches in the Department of Architecture and delivers executive and professional education through the University of Cambridge’s Professional and Continuing Education institute, including courses in User Experience Design, AI Essentials for Everyone, and AI for Research and Innovation. Through this teaching, he equips professionals from diverse backgrounds with the knowledge and practical tools to design more inclusive, ethical, and impactful technologies.
Dr. Zallio explores how inclusive design and artificial intelligence converge to create ethical, human-centered experiences. His research focuses on designing emerging technologies that adapt to people’s diverse needs, bridging innovation across digital and physical environments.
Alongside his academic leadership, Dr. Zallio brings deep industry expertise. He is the founder of the Metavethics Institute, a think tank dedicated to researching and developing ethical futures in phygital environments. He previously served as Global Accessibility Lead and Senior Experience Researcher at Autodesk, and has advised S&P 500 companies such as Amazon, as well as Silicon Valley–based venture capital firms like Plug and Play, and thousands of start-ups on inclusive innovation, design thinking, and responsible AI, shaping design strategies in architecture, engineering, healthcare, education, and digital technology.
A Fulbright Research Fellow at Stanford University, Dr. Zallio also holds an appointment as Adjunct Faculty at Dublin City University and was previously an A. Graves Research Fellow at Technological University Dublin. He is passionate about helping teams transform complex challenges into inclusive opportunities by embedding ethical approaches and evidence-based design into products, services, and policy development.
Research
Dr Matteo Zallio's research lies at the intersection of inclusive design, artificial intelligence, human–computer interaction, and architecture, with a focus on the ethical development of emerging technologies and environments that respond to people’s diverse physical, sensory, cognitive, and social needs.
Dr Zallio is the Executive Director of the Centre for Inclusive Design Futures, Co-Director of the Inclusive Design Group in the Department of Engineering and Co-Director of the Behaviour and Building Performance Group in the Department of Architecture. He is also a member of ai@cam, the University’s flagship mission on artificial intelligence, and the Centre for Science and Policy. At the heart of Dr Zallio’s research is the ambition to transform complex societal, environmental, and technological challenges into inclusive opportunities through evidence-based, data-informed, and creatively driven design.
His work connects academic research with practical implementation, contributing to responsible innovation across architecture, engineering, artificial intelligence, healthcare, education, and digital technology.
Research themes
1. Inclusive Design Futures
Developing evidence-based tools and frameworks, including the IDEA Toolkit and the Inclusive Design Canvas, that embed accessibility, inclusion, diversity, equity, and ethical principles into the design of buildings, products, services, and digital environments.
2. Evidence-Based, Human-Experience Research
Advancing qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method research approaches that connect people’s lived experiences with measurable outcomes. This work supports more inclusive and human-centred decision-making across physical, digital, and hybrid environments.
3. Human-Responsive Architecture and Neurodesign
Investigating how buildings, workplaces, smart environments, and digital twins can respond to people’s sensory, cognitive, emotional, behavioural, and social diversity. This research explores the relationships between spatial experience, inclusion, health, wellbeing, cognition, and belonging.
4. Phygital and Spatial Experience Design
Investigating how the convergence of physical and digital spaces, such as in smart buildings and Digital Twins, can foster inclusion and enhance human well-being.
5. Ethical and Inclusive Artificial Intelligence
Exploring how artificial intelligence and emerging technologies can support human agency, autonomy, confidence, and informed decision-making. This research addresses fairness, accessibility, transparency, safety, privacy, bias, and accountability throughout the design and implementation of AI-enabled systems.
6. Design Thinking and Research Translation
Applying design thinking as a strategic and participatory process to identify unmet needs, question assumptions, generate ideas, and prototype inclusive solutions. This work translates academic evidence into practical tools, policies, services, technologies, and organisational strategies.
For research enquiries, and PhD scholarships, please contact Dr. Matteo Zallio at mz461@cam.ac.uk