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2026
Industrial Design
Surface Laptop Ultra
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Surface Laptop Ultra
2026
I led the industrial design of Surface Laptop Ultra, from the earliest concepts through engineering, production and launch. The ambition was a new expression of Surface: extraordinary performance in an exceptionally thin profile, 15 inches and under 18 mm, without losing the simplicity, precision and human qualities that define the brand.
A laptop is a sophisticated piece of technology, yet also one of the most intimate objects in our lives. We touch it, carry it, open it and live with it. The design looks for a balance between the precision that speaks to its capability and the softness that makes it natural to hold.
Two complementary languages meet in one identity. The top carries the Surface DNA in crisp edges, precise geometry and carefully controlled surfaces. The underside is more human: continuous curves and soft transitions, like silk draped over the components inside.
A recessed base lifts the laptop visually off the desk. From a working angle it nearly disappears, leaving a clean, precise silhouette. The same structure integrates the air intake and speakers, a moment where form and engineering reinforce each other rather than compete for space.
Lead Industrial Designer | Designed by the Microsoft Surface Design Team.
Anodized aluminum. Finishes: Nightfall, Platinum.
Production 2026.
Charlie Schuck.
Animation:
ManvsMachine.
Held, carried, lived with
Precision and softness
From working height, the base disappears
Crisp edges, Surface DNA
The largest haptic touchpad on a Surface
Shaped by what is inside
Thermals and keyboard deck
Designed to be opened
Introducing Surface Laptop Ultra
Process
Bringing these ideas into production meant constant iteration with mechanical, thermal, manufacturing and materials teams. Hundreds of physical prototypes, from early 3D prints to precision CNC models, tested not only how the product looked, but how it felt, assembled and behaved in the real world. Forming processes, aluminum construction, tolerances and the subtlest surface transitions were decided again and again, until the complexity of those decisions was no longer visible.
Magnetic Connect
It began with a simple question: could an interaction we perform every day become more intuitive? Beyond the mechanism, the focus was the gesture itself: the moment of connection, the tactile feedback and the ease of repeated use. Field strength and retention were tuned across many prototypes. A familiar experience, reconsidered at a much smaller scale.
Magnetic Connect
Magnetic field and flux simulation
The Space
Industrial design continues long after the object is defined. For the launch, the design intent became a physical experience: every part suspended above a lit craft table, and a small robotic installation connecting and releasing the magnetic plug, again and again. A temporary venue, built and removed within a short window, brought its own design constraints.
Suspended exploded view
The craft table
Made for world makers
Surface Laptop Ultra
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