Meet the jurors for the 2026 Innovation by Design Awards

This year’s judges are leaders across design disciplines from graphic design and fashion to architecture and UX.

(Left to Right, Top to Bottom) Abidur Chowdhury, Head of Design, Hark; Arshiya Lal, Director of Corporate Development, Circ; Jason Yuan, founder and CEO, Future Lovers; Gullivar Shepard, partner, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates; Kelly Wearstler, designer; Katy O’Brien, Head of Sustainable Innovation, New Balance; Zac Posen, Executive Vice President and Creative Director of Gap Inc and Chief Creative Officer of Old Navy; Juliane Wolf, design principal and partner, Studio Gang; Jay Kamath, co-founder/chief creative officer, Haymaker; Eames Demetrios, Director, Eames Office and Chairman of the Board, Charles & Ray Eames Foundation; Erik Carter, designer. [Photos: courtesy of Mario Sorrenti (Posen), Lyndon French (Wolf)]

We’re excited to announce the judges of the 2026 Innovation by Design Awards. Innovation by Design honors the best projects and ideas across the design spectrum, as represented by our fantastic group of jurors, who come from some of the world’s most exciting design-led companies. You can read more about their expertise and backgrounds below.

And remember to apply for the Innovation by Design Awards by April 11.

Erik Carter, Designer

Erik Carter is a designer, illustrator, art director, and writer whose work bridges commercial design and critical discourse. He has designed for Verso Books, The New York Times, MIT Technology Review, The New Yorker, and New Directions Publishing, and his essays explore the ethics, the contradictions, and the future of visual communication. Carter’s first book of essays, Design Harder, was published in 2025 by Book Ideas and is currently in its second printing. He has taught at the School of Visual Arts and the Pratt Institute, both in New York City, as well as the California College of the Arts, and he currently teaches at San Diego City College.

Abidur Chowdhury, Head of Design, Hark

Born and raised in London, Abidur Chowdhury has recently joined a new startup in California as its head of design. He’s interested in creating advanced intelligence with the goal of freeing people from the digital clutter of the technology we have today—in hopes of creating space for meaning, focus, and creativity.

Prior to his current appointment, Chowdhury was a member of Apple’s industrial design team for seven years, helping craft a variety of Apple’s products used daily by hundreds of millions of people across the world. Prior to Apple, he had worked with many of London’s top design agencies. He graduated from Loughborough University with a Bachelor of Science degree in product design.

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