Shenzhen Promotion Event of the 2026 Better Design Award Successfully Held

On October 27, the global promotion event for the third Better Design Award (BDA) was held in Shenzhen. Under the theme “Better Design, Better Life,” the event brought together more than 100 participants, including design academics, representatives from the intelligent manufacturing sector, and leaders of creative organizations. The event provided a comprehensive overview of the competition’s judging framework and supporting measures for translating design achievements into practical applications. It also promoted the global call for entries and established a platform for connecting international creative talent with industry.

The promotion event in Shenzhen

Opening remarks by Shirley Feng, Secretary-General of the BDA Organizing Committee and President of the Shenzhen Industrial Design Profession Association (SIDA)

Du Hemin, Deputy Dean and Professor of Shenzhen Technology University School of Design and Innovation

At the event, Wang Min, President of the BDA Jury and Professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, delivered a comprehensive presentation on the Third BDA.

This edition features two major categories: Product Design and Design for Industry, with a total prize pool of RMB 4.1 million and 326 awards. The submission deadline is December 12, 2026. Designers, organizations, and businesses worldwide are invited to submit their entries through the official BDA website.

The Product Design category comprises three groups covering a broad range of fields. The Design for Industry category, a signature track of the competition, focuses on systemic transformation across industrial value chains and invites integrated solutions spanning the entire chain.

Wang Min, President of the BDA Jury and Professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, presenting the highlights of the competition

Two industry leaders delivered keynote presentations, sharing practical insights into how design can drive value creation in the real economy from different perspectives. Liu Haoran, Vice President of OPPO and General Manager of the OPPO Industrial Design Center, drew on his experience in mass-producing consumer electronics to emphasize that, in the AI era, industrial design must engage directly with real-world users to uncover their genuine needs. He highlighted the importance of bringing a human touch to technology products and leveraging the Greater Bay Area’s industrial supply chain to ensure a reliable transition from creative concepts to mass production. Kong Hongqiang, Founder of the Xuegu brand, explored how Eastern cultural heritage can be reinterpreted for contemporary life. He emphasized that local design should integrate traditional cultural values into the functionality and aesthetics of everyday objects, helping establish a distinctive contemporary Eastern design language.

Liu Haoran, Vice President of OPPO and General Manager of the OPPO Industrial Design Center

Kong Hongqiang, Founder of the Xuegu brand

Moderated by Du Hemin, Associate Dean of the School of Creative Design at Shenzhen Technology University, the roundtable brought together five distinguished guests: Wang Min, President of the BDA Jury and Professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts; Liu Haoran, Vice President of OPPO and General Manager of the OPPO Industrial Design Center; Feng Xiao, Co-founder and General Manager of RITO Creative; Zheng Bin, Founder of INNOZEN Design; and Kong Hongqiang, Founder of the Xuegu brand. Under the theme “Design for Good: Creating Shared Value Across Industries, Brands and Cities in the Asia-Pacific,” the panel explored topics including emotional connection in intelligent and digital products, global brand expansion, and sustainable design. The discussion highlighted a shared conviction: product design must remain rooted in user needs, while design itself can serve as a bridge for cross-cultural communication and understanding.

Roundtable discussion — “Design for Good: Creating Shared Value Across Industries, Brands and Cities in the Asia-Pacific”

The Shenzhen promotion event marked a key stop on the third BDA’ s global outreach tour. Building on Shenzhen’ s strong industrial design ecosystem and its reputation as a City of Design, the event further strengthened connections between global design resources and the manufacturing industries of the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area. The competition will continue its promotional tour in major industrial cities in China and abroad, bringing together outstanding design talent and innovative resources from around the world.

The 2026 Better Design Award is now accepting entries from around the world!

The competition welcomes outstanding enterprises and public institutions, design firms, universities, research teams, and individual designers to participate and compete for 326 awards, including the prestigious Better Design Award Grand Awards.

Visit the official BDA website to learn more about the competition rules and submit your entry:

www.bdaward.com

We look forward to discovering your outstanding designs!