What does it mean to design for a world that is constantly shifting? 

For today’s interior designers, it’s no longer just about aesthetics. It’s about adaptability, empathy, and foresight, and this year’s Manila Interior Design Summit (MIDS) not only brought the future into the room but also transformed it. 

The third and most forward-thinking edition of MIDS, held from 31 July to 3 August at several venues in Metro Manila, gathered key voices from the Asia-Pacific design community. 

With the theme “Design/Shift: Breaking Boundaries,” MIDS 2025 centered on the revolutionary intersection of sustainability, AI, cultural narrative, and generational transition.

The Philippine Institute of Interior Designers (PIID), currently in its 61st year, hosted the summit, which focused on more than simply materials and places. It encouraged guests to reinvent interior design as a driver of empathy, community, and technological harmony.

Voices from the vanguards

“As interior designers, we stand at the intersection of the human experience and the digital future. We don’t just create spaces, we tell stories, solve problems and build experiences that bridge technology and humanities,” president of PIID, IDrs. Paolo Castro, said during the summit’s opening remarks in BGC. “The power we hold is not only in our minds but also in our hearts. We design not just with precision, but with purpose and empathy.”

Castro’s message resonated throughout the four-day summit, as sessions and panels explored topics from AI-powered visualization to emotion-led design briefs.

For Carla Leonor, the rise of tech isn’t just an inevitability; it’s an opportunity. “Technology is something that’s emerging. And for interior designers, not just in the Philippines but also globally, we are already looking into how technology can improve how we do things.”

She highlighted to DAILY TRIBUNE that while using AI, they are “working with it rather than shutting it away and pretending that it doesn’t exist.” However, there are always limitations.