Kawasaki, Japan – Toshiba Corporation’s excellence in design has once again been recognized at the iF DESIGN AWARD 2026 honors, the internationally prestigious design competition organized by iF International Forum Design. This year, Toshiba took two iF DESIGN AWARDs, for its Heavy Ion Therapy System CI-1000 for treating cancer, and for Exploring QKD “Delicate therefore Robust,” an experiential installation based on quantum technology.

Heavy Ion Therapy System CI-1000 was recognized in the Medicine/Health category of the Product Design discipline, while Exploring QKD “Delicate therefore Robust” took its award in the User Experience (UX) Concept category of the Concept discipline. The awards acknowledge, on the international stage, the tangible results and achievements of Toshiba’s long-standing commitment to transforming advanced technologies into designs that address social challenges and deliver value to people.

1. Heavy Ion Therapy System CI-1000

Heavy Ion Therapy System CI-1000 is a cancer therapy system that enables effective tumor treatment without the need for surgery or hospitalization. Toshiba leveraged its proprietary superconducting technology to achieve significant system miniaturization while securing highly precise site irradiation, at the same time as creating a treatment experience that provides both patients and medical professionals with reassurance and a comfortable environment.

The system design won recognition for successfully bringing cutting-edge medical technology combined with human-centered treatment to an advanced medical field.

Toshiba Heavy Ion Therapy System

2. Exploring QKD “Delicate therefore Robust” ~ Children’s Educational Installation

Exploring QKD “Delicate therefore Robust” is an experiential, exhibition-based design project that intuitively communicates the essence of quantum key distribution (QKD), an advanced data security technology, through direct interaction. The installation was exhibited at EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, a testbed for a future society*.

QKD encodes key information on photons, and discards any photons that have been interfered with when eavesdropping is detected, forming cryptographic keys only from safe photons. This mechanism sustains security in the quantum computer era. To convey the paradox whereby fragility becomes strength, the project represents photons as soap bubbles—popping them visualizes interference. Through an immersive spatial design that integrates visual, auditory, and tactile elements, visitors intuitively grasp the concepts of delicacy and robustness inherent in quantum security.

The project was highly praised as a communication design initiative that translates complex quantum security technology into an intuitive and memorable experience.

entangle moment - [quantum | earth | universe] × art
EXPO2025 Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) Top | Toshiba Design | Toshiba

• This work was performed for Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI), Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP), “Promoting Application of Advanced Quantum Technologies to Social Challenges” as part of the research theme “Construction of advanced information processing infrastructure using quantum secure cloud” (Project management agency: QST).

Since 1954, the iF DESIGN AWARD has been a globally recognized benchmark of design excellence. The iF Design brand is internationally established as a symbol of outstanding design achievement, with the iF DESIGN AWARD regarded as one of the most important design honors in the world. It honors design achievements in all disciplines: product, packaging, branding & communication, service design, architecture and interior architecture, user experience (UX), user interface (UI) and concepts.
In 2026, over 10,000 entries from 68 countries and regions were rigorously evaluated by 129 independent design experts, with only the most outstanding designs receiving the iF DESIGN AWARD. All award-winning entries are presented on ifdesign.com.