The second-ever YD x KeyShot Inspiration Hub Design of the Month goes to the Hìtëkw, a rather interesting-looking tennis racquet with an even more interesting back story. Designed using a combination of AI-based tools as well as generative design, the Hìtëkw boasts of a futuristic visual aesthetic that’s never been seen before… and that isn’t all. The redesigned racquet is lighter and stronger too, as a result of this AI-powered makeover!
All Design Lab experimented with using OpenAI’s Dall·E2 to generate concept directions for the racquet’s design, only to realize that almost the AI could only work on a dataset of existing images; and nobody had ever made a racquet like the Hìtëkw before, which made it difficult for the AI to really think outside the box. This became the starting point for All Design Lab’s creative brief, which was to completely redesign the racquet’s silhouette itself.
To create new racquet archetypes, the All Design Lab team relied on new CAD tools. The designers created their rough form in Gravity Sketch, a VR-based 3D program that lets you sketch and sculpt in virtual reality, before taking the product to a generative algorithm to optimize the racquet’s unique frame for strength and reliability. The result was the Hìtëkw, a racquet that’s stronger and lighter than its competitors, with a distinct visual edge thanks to its organic, 3D-printed generative metal design.
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