Faculty:Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
School:Cambridge School of Art
Location: Cambridge
Areas of Expertise: Graphic design and typography , Digital Media
Research Supervision:Yes
Courses taught: Graphic Design
Matthias’ specialisms comprise graphic design and typography, motion graphics and digital media, as well as experience design and design thinking. He is an expert in creative entrepreneurship and innovation management.
Visit Matthias' profile on ResearchGate
Matthias Hillner holds three postgraduate degrees from the Royal College of Art, London, UK including a PhD in Design IP and Innovation Management received from the Department for Service Design in 2019. In 2015 he was commissioned by the UK IPO to investigate the infringement of design rights in the UK, before he moved to Singapore to become Head of School, Design Communication at LASALLE College of the Arts, and subsequently Director of Programmes at the Glasgow School of Art in Singapore. He is also the Founder of the Studio for Virtual Typography, a design consultancy which was funded through a startup award obtained from the UK National Endowment of Science Technology and the Arts (NESTA).
Matthias authored the book Intellectual Property, Design Innovation, and Entrepreneurship, which was published by Springer in January 2021. He is co-founder of TruBlu, an innovation management initiative, and serves the Action Society for Entrepreneurship (ACE) in Singapore as a startup mentor.
Matthias currently teaches on:
Hillner, M., 2022. Towards a Democratisation of Innovation. AHFE 2022, The International Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics, New York City, US (book chapter).
Hillner, M., 2021. The Evolutionary Nature of Innovation Businesses. AHFE 2021, The International Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics, New York City, US (book chapter).
Hillner, M., 2021. Intellectual Property, Design Innovation, and Entrepreneurship (Berlin: Springer) (book).
Hillner, M., 2019. Time Consciousness in Relation to Emergent Typography. AHFE 2019, The International Conference 2020, Washington DC, USA (book chapter).
Hillner, M., 2022. Innovation Landscaping — Singapore’s Startup Ecosystem. DMI 2022, Academic Design Management Conference, OCAD University, Toronto, Canada.
Hillner, M., 2022. Reflections on Business Model Design for Startups. DMI 2022, Academic Design Management Conference, OCAD University, Toronto, Canada.
Hillner, M., 2022. Towards a Democratisation of Innovatio.n AHFE 2022, The International Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics, New York City, US.
Hillner, M., 2021. The Evolutionary Nature of Innovation Businesses. AHFE 2021, The International Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics, New York City, US.
Hillner, M., 2020. I Hate Books - Alternative Approaches to Design Research. ALC2020, Applied Learning Conference 2020, Singapore.
Hillner, M., 2019. Time Consciousness in Relation to Emergent Typography. AHFE 2019, The International Conference 2020, Washington DC, USA.
Hillner, M., 2018. Design Thinking - A Buzz Word or the Holy Grail in Design? E&PDE 2018, The 20th Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics, Washington DC, US.
Hillner, M., de Leon, N., 2018. Managing Innovation - Business Development Model for Design-led Start-ups. International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, London, UK.
Hillner, M., Lim, S., 2018. Design Thinking - Towards a New Perspective. DMI Academic Design Management Conference, Ravensbourne, London, UK.
Lim, S., Hillner, M., 2018. Design Thinking as a Meta Language To Get There - Designing Together. Cumulus Paris 2018: hosted by: Césaap – Conférence des Écoles supérieures d’Arts appliqués de Paris.
Hillner, M., Lim, S., 2017. Evaluating Interdisciplinary Collaboration - Towards a Methodology. Building Community: Design Education for a Sustainable Future, E&PDE 2017, Oslo, Norway: The 19th International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education.
Hillner, M., 2017. Design IP legislation in the UK - An Opportunity to Innovate? Research Perspectives on Creative Intersections, 1st DMA (Design Management Academy) Conference, Hong Kong, China: Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Hillner, M., 2017. Managing Design IP in the UK - Does the End Justify the Means? Research Perspectives on Creative Intersections, 1st DMA (Design Management Academy) Conference, Hong Kong, China: Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Hillner, M., 2016. Innovation and IP - What works and what doesn’t? Moving the Innovation Horizon. ISPIM (International Society for Professional Innovation Management) Innovation Summit, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Interview by Payal Nayar, 2021. Matthias Hillner, Founder of the Studio for Virtual Typography, Melting Pot
Interview by Leticia Caminero, 2021, Intellectual Property, Design Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Matthias Hillner, Intangible Law, Season 2, Episode 5 (podcast), Leticia Caminero 2013-2020