- Two projects recognised for their ability to improve city life.
- La Aceleradora and SenseLine stand out for combining innovation, social impact and urban experience.
MINI has announced the winning projects of the 6th Edition of the MINI Design Award at the Madrid Design Festival 2026 in its two categories: Professional and New Talent. Two proposals that share the same ambition to demonstrate how design can improve city life, from health and well-being to universal accessibility.
Professional Category: “La Aceleradora” by Murado & Elvira Arquitectos
The winning project in the Professional category is “La Aceleradora de La Paz”, a therapeutic space set up at La Paz University Hospital (Madrid), conceived as the first in a series of industrialised pavilions that could be replicated in other Spanish hospitals.
Promoted by the Unoentrecienmil Foundation, the project stems from a line of research that shows that physical exercise can help accelerate the healing of childhood cancer, as well as improve well-being during treatment.
Designed by Juan Elvira and Clara Murado (Murado & Elvira Arquitectos), ‘La Aceleradora’ is located on the hospital roof, next to the main entrance and connected to the maternity and children’s tower, offering an alternative environment to the main building without leaving the hospital. It is a more pleasant, flexible and welcoming place designed for patients, families and healthcare staff.
The pavilion is organised as a sequence of six adjoining spaces, dedicated to different activities, from a waiting and activation area to a (supervised) exercise area, a laboratory and a terrace with a garden, to create an atmosphere of calm and tranquillity.
Project credits
- Developer: Fundación Unoentrecienmil
- Architects: Juan Elvira and Clara Murado (Murado & Elvira Arquitectos)
- Location: La Paz University Hospital (Madrid)
New Talent Category: ‘SenseLine’ by María Navarro
In New Talent, the winning project is ‘SenseLine’ by María Navarro, a proposal that transforms an everyday urban element such as a pedestrian crossing into an inclusive system that communicates through light and vibration, facilitating safe crossing for blind, deafblind, visually impaired or mobility-impaired people.
‘SenseLine’ proposes modular paving that integrates three solutions into a single system, with LED lighting on the crosswalk stripes, piezoelectric modules that generate energy with each step, and a vibrating haptic platform that provides tactile feedback on when to cross.
The design includes technical architecture designed for the real environment, taking into account that maintenance is simple and the modules are replaceable without major works, as well as a control system that synchronises lighting and vibration with the traffic light status. The project also incorporates energy storage using supercapacitors to power part of the system’s operation.
Project credits
- Author: Maria Navarro
- Discipline: Product Design
MINI Design Award at Madrid Design Festival
With these awards, the Prize reinforces its commitment to projects that connect innovation, city and purpose, highlighting the role of design as a tool for tackling real challenges: from improving the hospital experience in paediatric oncology to accessibility and safety in public spaces.
MINI’s participation also reinforces its commitment to urban design and to promoting projects capable of improving the quality of life in cities. Through the MINI Design Award and its presence at the festival, the brand supports talent and creativity as drivers of transformation, giving visibility to proposals that connect innovation, functionality and positive impact on people’s daily lives.
This support is part of MINI’s commitment to increasingly sustainable, accessible and user-centred mobility and brand experience, where innovation and transparency help make changes easier to adopt. MINI understands the city as a shared space that improves when companies, institutions and the creative community work in a coordinated manner, promoting real solutions that make cities function better.
MINI’s commitment to the Madrid Design Festival is part of the BMW Group’s and all its brands’ commitment to culture, talent and creativity in Spain.
About BMW GROUP
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides top-class financial services. BMW Group’s production network comprises more than 30 production plants across the world; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.
In 2024, the BMW Group sold more than 2.45 million passenger cars and more than 210,000 motorcycles worldwide. Profit before tax in the 2024 financial year was €11 billion, with revenue amounting to €142.4 billion. As of 31 December 2024, the BMW Group had a workforce of 159,104 employees.
The BMW Group’s economic success has always been based on a long-term vision and responsible action. Sustainability is a key element of the BMW Group’s corporate strategy and encompasses all products, from the supply chain and production to the end of their useful life.
Source: BMW Press Club GROUP SPAIN