A car can carry the visual memory of generations of motoring. Aether looks elsewhere for its references, drawing on gaming culture to imagine how a younger audience might relate to an electric vehicle.
Developed at Savannah College of Art and Design, the functional student concept was led by Sam Merrill, working with Andrew Appezato, Willem Ballard, Sam Dittrich, and Lillian Brown. Merrill received Emerging Product Designer of the Year at the 2025 European Product Design Award.
The team describes a project designed and built over one year. Its central driving position makes individual experience a defining part of the interior, while an exposed rear draws inspiration from gaming computers. Z-shaped rear lights extend the reference to the generation the concept addresses.
Aether also proposes music that responds to driving. Together, these ideas treat the vehicle as an experience shaped by the cultural world of its intended users. The references are carried into the arrangement of the car and its interaction, rather than confined to its surface styling.
The project remains a student concept, not a commercially available vehicle. Its award documentation describes extensive use of 3D printing, but does not establish production readiness, road certification, or a manufacturing programme.
That distinction allows the work to be considered on its own terms. A functional prototype gives an idea enough physical presence to invite discussion and criticism. It can explore an unfamiliar direction without resolving every question that would accompany production.
Aether’s contribution is that change of perspective. It brings a different set of experiences into the design studio and asks how they might influence the car’s character. The result is a tangible proposal for a conversation that is still open.
View Aether on the European Product Design Award winner’s page →
