Design for Entropy: Active Inference and Technology

By Luca M. Possati

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. Active inference provides a powerful lens for understanding perception, planning, and action as forms of probabilistic inference.

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

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0262056267
• ISBN13: 9780262056267
• Release Date: September 2026
• Publisher: MIT Press
• Length: 232 Pages