Design Nexus Summit

The Design Nexus Summit kicks off our fall semester with speakers, workshops, and studio tours. Designed to inspire and connect, the Summit takes place over multiple days and includes both formal presentations and informal opportunities for students to connect with speakers, sponsors and alumni. 2025 speaker Sundar Raman (CTO of PRESENT) summed up the event best:

“CMU's Nexus Symposium 2025 was, in a word, alchemy. It was inspiring, enlightening, and soulful... because it was as much about the students educating the us (the "experts"), as the other way round. I found myself not wanting to leave classrooms because the conversations with the students were so engaging. And the depth of real-world anecdotes from the panelists was affirmation that Experience Design is the funnest and most satisfying discipline you can spend your time on. I came as a speaker and left with a wonderful community!”

Vision: We inspire and equip forward-thinking designers and creatives with new perspectives, while fostering meaningful connections between students and industry leaders.

Mission: We convene designers and students from across the broad spectrum of the field to have engaging, thought-provoking discussions that spark innovation and shape the future of design and technology.

Get ready for the 2026 Design Nexus Summit!
September 16-18, 2026
Theme: Designing the Designer
Keep an eye out for our amazing line-up of speakers!

Sponsored by Amazon Design and PRESENT