Founding Conference of the World Industrial Design Association (WIDA). Delegates and guests attend the inaugural conference of the World Industrial Design Association (WIDA) in Shanghai, China, on April 18, 2026. The new international organization aims to promote global collaboration and innovation in industrial design. (Credit: WIDA)

Shanghai, April 18 -- The founding conference of the World Industrial Design Association (WIDA) was held in Shanghai on Saturday.

WIDA is an international, non-profit social organization co-founded by domestic and foreign industrial design industry organizations, enterprises, universities, design institutions, and individuals, including the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, the China Industrial Design Association (CIDA), Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Heller Design from Germany.

Headquartered in Shanghai, the association aims to promote the in-depth integration of global industrial design academic research with industry-academia-research collaboration, enhance the development level of global industrial design, build an open, collaborative, and efficient innovation ecosystem, and contribute to the progress of human civilization and economic and social development.

The first batch of founding members of the association includes 168 individuals and organizations from 23 countries and regions worldwide, covering multiple disciplines and industrial fields including design thinking, design science, artificial intelligence, robotics, aerospace, automobiles, high-end equipment, new materials and processes, information interaction, intelligent design, and ecological and low-carbon design.

Zhu Xinyuan, President of the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, was elected as the first president of the association.

Tag: Department of International Affairs of CAST