Austen Angell

Charles Austen Angell is the founder of Modern Edge, Inc., a strategic industrial design firm based in Portland, Oregon. Modern Edge is known for original work in the fields of health & wellness, mobility, home products, and experiential environments.

As President and CEO, Angell oversees all Modern Edge projects, from client contact through human factors research, design refinement, product and program management, market positioning, and customer experience.

Mr. Angell brings a rich and diverse background to his company. He maintains a special focus on the role of culture, politics, and geography in shaping human needs, and meeting those needs with responsive product design. He is passionate about designing products that transcend cultural boundaries to enhance the shared human experience.

Before founding Modern Edge, Mr. Angell served as Director of Design Research and Innovation for Intel Corporation. Mr. Angell holds his BSID in Industrial Design from Purdue University and served as Design Lead for a Purdue master’s level engineering grant to develop passive restraint systems for General Motors. His independent design experience spans projects in Europe, the Americas, Southeast Asia, Africa and Australia. Prior projects include work with Intel, Samsung, John Deere, Providence Health Care, Harley Davidson, SC Johnson, Medtronic, BMW, Gillette, St. Jude Medical, Sunbeam, and many others.

Mr. Angell’s published works include articles in Innovation magazine and other journals of design. He has also been a guest lecturer at NASA, Purdue University, Oregon Health and Science University,, the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, and the University of Southern Illinois-Carbondal, and has taught an online masters level class in Sustainable Product development for Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Through his numerous speaking engagements, publications, and teaching, he is committed to advancing the profession of Industrial Design.

In service to the profession, Mr. Angell was on the Board and the Chair Emeritus of the Industrial Designers Society of America, and was among the original trustees for the Design Foundation; a public charity in support of design education and social responsibility.

In 2015, Austen was inducted into the Academy of fellows for IDSA. In January of 2016, A national poll of designers voted him as one of the 50 most notable IDSA members over the last fifty years – a list that includes the founders of Continuum, ZIBA, and IDEO, as well as Raymond Lowey, Sharon Thompson, Nancy Perkins, Henry Dreyfuss, Katherine J. McCoy, Patricia A. Moore, and Walter Dorwin Teague.

He is a sought out speaker on design and innovation all over the world, and is known for his commitment to design for positive social impact.