Nic Lee is a computational designer at the MIT Media Lab. His research centers on the framework of Endless Ecosystems in which all of the matter used for construction systems is produced, and ultimately consumed, by ecosystems. Through his work, he aims to bridge the gap between grown and built environments, bringing the power and sustainability of the natural world to human systems. His research combines design, digital fabrication, material development and energy evaluation in order to create end-to-end pipelines for sustainable construction.
Nic graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Science degree in biomedical engineering and a Bachelor of Arts degree in neuroscience, and received a master’s degree in design studies from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, where his thesis centered on using artificial intelligence to model organic growth in designed environments. His work has been exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art and flown aboard the International Space Station. In 2020, he received his Master’s in Media Arts and Sciences at the Mediated Matter Group and he is currently a PhD candidate at the MIT Media Lab.