Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley door pickup 10am - 7pm 3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
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  • Open Daily: 10am - 10pm
    Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm

    3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
    612-822-4611

Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm
3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
612-822-4611
Design for Entropy: Active Inference and Technology

Design for Entropy: Active Inference and Technology

M. Possati, Luca

Paperback

CognitionGeneral DesignGeneral Sociology

ISBN10: 0262056267
ISBN13: 9780262056267
Publisher: MIT Press
Published: Sep 1 2026
Pages: 246
Weight: 0.65
Height: 0.80 Width: 5.92 Depth: 8.91
Language: English
How active inference and the free energy principle transform our understanding of technology and design.

Design for Entropy offers a bold rethinking of human-technology relations by bringing active inference and the Free Energy Principle--leading frameworks in neuroscience and cognitive science--into dialogue with design theory, as well as the sociology and psychology of technology.

Luca Possati argues that any artifact--any technology--can be understood as a network of predictions and predictive models about human behavior and its environment. The active inference agent is, by definition, a technological agent--one whose survival and adaptation depend on the ability to construct, reshape, and inhabit a predictive niche. This perspective opens the door to a new approach for addressing foundational questions about design and the role of technology in social groups and the psychological dynamics of human-technology interaction.

Through in-depth case studies--covering smartphones, adaptive robotics, and smart cities--Possati introduces the Designer-Artifact-User (DAU) software model, an active inference-based tool for UX design. He also confronts psychological and social challenges, including digital addiction, depression, affective modulation, and the role of technology in mentalizing.

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