#Textiles & Apparel / Garment

2025-10-23

Nike unites innovation, design and product teams to accelerate athlete-centered innovation

Nike, Jordan Brand and Converse are uniting their Innovation, Design and Product teams in a single, athlete-focused creation engine designed to accelerate innovation and drive growth as part of the new NIKE, Inc. Sport Offense © 2025 Nike

Nike, Jordan Brand and Converse are joining forces under a new, athlete-focused creation structure aimed at accelerating innovation and driving growth across NIKE, Inc. The new setup unites the Innovation, Design and Product teams from all three brands into a single “creation engine” that will enable greater sharing of insights, technology and manufacturing methods throughout the innovation process. This integration is part of Nike’s new Sport Offense strategy and is designed to enhance the creation of products that help athletes perform at their best.

At the same time, Nike unveiled four new innovation platforms that demonstrate its long-standing commitment to solving challenges for both elite and everyday athletes:

Aero-FIT – A new cooling technology that channels more than double the airflow of previous Nike apparel, supporting peak performance in extreme conditions.

Nike Mind – A neuroscience-based footwear platform over a decade in development, launching with the Mind 001 mule and Mind 002 sneaker, designed to help athletes focus before and after competition.

Project Amplify – The world’s first powered footwear system for running and walking, helping athletes go faster and farther with less effort.

Therma-FIT Air Milano – A performance outerwear platform using Nike Air technology to regulate temperature without changing layers, offering warmth levels from hoodie to mid-weight puffer.

According to Phil McCartney, Chief Innovation, Design and Product Officer at NIKE, Inc., the unified structure is rooted in Nike’s founding spirit and inspired by the challenge from Kobe Bryant to “create epic s--- and make athletes better.”

“Everything begins and ends with the athlete’s voice — their goals, their struggles, their drive,” McCartney said. “By uniting our creation organization across Nike, Jordan and Converse, we’re accelerating progress and leveraging our collective strengths to deliver products that make athletes better. It’s a new day in Innovation, Design and Product at Nike.”

The company emphasizes that its innovation culture is powered by nearly 1,000 designers and experts working across facilities such as the Serena Williams Building on the Philip H. Knight Campus, the LeBron James Innovation Center (home of the Nike Sport Research Lab), and the Bowerman Footwear Lab, supported by leading global manufacturing partners.

“We are a team of dreamers, designers and creators with a responsibility to make athlete dreams real,” McCartney added. “We start with the athlete, stay grounded in sport, and push what’s possible in innovation, design and product.”

Nike’s mission remains unchanged: to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world — and, as the company reminds, if you have a body, you are an athlete.