Asics and the University of Michigan announced the opening of AMSI Lab, a new academic research and development laboratory on the University’s Ann Arbor campus. The lab supports the Asics Michigan Sport Innovation (AMSI) Center, a joint research program established through a broader research collaboration between the company and the university. AMSI Lab, Asics’ first industry-academia innovation lab, is designed to create a more direct path from university research to real-world sport innovation and product development.
AMSI Lab brings together Asics’ “human-centric science” approach and product expertise with the University of Michigan’s multidisciplinary strengths in science, engineering and design to translate academic research into new technologies and product concepts for running performance, footwear and apparel. University researchers will work alongside Asics scientists, product developers and athletes to prototype, test and refine ideas with real-world applications.
“Asics has always placed athletes at the center of its research and product development,” said Mitsuyuki Tominaga, president and chief operations officer of Asics Corporation. “Working with the University of Michigan allows us to engage with new thinking across science, engineering and design that can challenge how we approach performance innovation. Our goal is to turn that knowledge into meaningful advances that help people move.”
This collaborative model gives University of Michigan researchers an opportunity to apply their multidisciplinary expertise to real-world performance challenges.
“The University of Michigan and Asics share the conviction that research should benefit people by providing what they need to live and move well,” said Domenico Grasso, president of the University of Michigan. “Today, that shared philosophy finds a home here in Ann Arbor. The AMSI Lab connects Michigan researchers from across the university with Asics innovators to advance scientific research and accelerate the development of materials to help athletes of all levels.”
AMSI Lab is partnering with six faculty members who will initiate projects spanning biomechanics, materials science, robotics, design, computer vision, and athlete preferences and behavior, with potential applications to future running footwear, apparel and performance technologies.
“The AMSI Lab provides a space for us to combine our breadth of research strengths across campus with Asics expertise in order to bring new innovations to light,” said Ken Kozloff, co-director of the Asics Michigan Sport Innovation Center. “By translating discoveries made in the lab into testable prototypes, we are looking forward to helping runners at every level train and recover better.”
“AMSI Lab gives us a way to move more quickly from research questions to experimentation, athlete feedback and product learning,” said Norihiko Taniguchi, CEO of Asics Institute of Sport Science America and co-director of the Asics Michigan Sport Innovation Center. “What we learn here can directly inform future Asics research and help shape new approaches to running and performance innovation.”
As research progresses, findings from AMSI Lab will move into new experiments, technologies and product concepts, creating a more direct pipeline from academic discovery and athlete insight to real-world innovation. Research from AMSI Lab is expected to begin informing new Asics running and performance products by 2028, with additional concepts and applications developing over time.
