Anijo Mathew is dean of the USC Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy in Los Angeles. He was formerly dean of the Institute of Design (ID) at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Prior to that appointment, Mathew was head of the Department of Art and Design at the College of Architecture, Art and Design at the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, and he previously served as founding academic director of the Ed Kaplan Family Institute for Innovation and Tech Entrepreneurship at Illinois Tech.

Mathew’s research examines emergent models of innovation mediated by technology and media convergence, drawing on frameworks of design fiction, design-led innovation and entrepreneurship. In 2015, informed by this research, he founded Vamonde, a Chicago-based venture that scaled to more than 50 cities internationally and was recognized by Built In Chicago as one of six companies deploying VR as a disruptive technology.

A native of India, Mathew holds a doctorate in computing from The Open University in the United Kingdom, a Master in Design Studies from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design and a professional Bachelor of Architecture from Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, in Ranchi, India.

Mathew has worked with numerous Chicago-based institutions to prototype urban and placemaking technologies. In 2012, he partnered with the Chicago commissioner of culture to develop a comprehensive cultural planning framework for the city. He has led research initiatives funded by or conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. State Department, IDEO/Palmwood, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Choose Chicago and the Chicago Loop Alliance. His research and student projects have been exhibited at the National Museum of Mexican Art, the Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago City Hall and the Chicago Cultural Center. Before joining Illinois Tech, he held a tenure-track faculty appointment at the College of Architecture, Art and Design at Mississippi State University, where he prototyped assistive technologies for rural communities.

Widely published, Mathew regularly consults with organizations worldwide on design and innovation. He has advised senior leadership at the Dubai Future Foundation in the UAE, Godrej & Boyce in India, the Far Eastern Group in Taiwan and Finablr in the UAE, and has taught at Harvard Business School, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Illinois Tech’s Stuart School of Business. His consulting engagements include Accenture, Hyatt, Motorola Mobility, the Hong Kong Design Centre, the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore/Singapore River One, Gensler, Chicago Public Schools, the Chicago Artists Coalition and the Chicago Architecture Foundation. He currently serves on the design advisory board at FLAME University and as an advisor to the policy think tank Pranava Institute in India. He previously served on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Loop Alliance, on the executive committee of Choose Chicago, as an advisor to the Chicago Architecture Center and on the executive committee of the Birla Institute of Technology Alumni Association — North America.