Haider Ali Akmal

Dr. Haider Ali Akmal is a speculative design researcher and faculty member at UNSW Art, Design & Architecture, specializing in playful and post-anthropocentric approaches to design. His research explores intersections of technology, philosophy, and human interaction through IoT, AI, and ludic design. He holds a PhD from Lancaster University and has affiliations with the Creative Robotics Lab and Creative Technologies Research Lab at UNSW. Teaching roles include convening Interaction Design courses and supervising PhD students in speculative design and posthuman perspectives.

Education: PhD in Design (Lancaster University), MA in Design Management (Lancaster University), BFA in Printmaking (National College of Arts, Lahore). Grants include a National Heritage Lottery Fund project (2019) and an EPSRC PhD fellowship (2017). Exhibitions span international venues like the China Print Museum and London galleries. Current supervision focuses on co-performance in fashion through post-human frameworks.

Research themes emphasize ambiguity, play, and More-than-Human-Centred design, with a creative practice in printmaking exploring entangled human experiences. Key areas of exploration include AI legibility, IoT ethics, and speculative design methodologies.