Materials company Ananas Anam has developed Piñatex, an animal-friendly alternative to leather made from pineapple waste. More about Leather alternative Piñatex is made from pineapple leaves
US firm NBBJ has created the largest office in North America for tech company Samsung, incorporating features intended to show how a "legacy brand can play on par with the most-nimble tech startups" (+ slideshow). More about Samsung's Silicon Valley office by NBBJ features nap pods and music listening rooms
Water flows in seemingly impossible ways across this liquid-resistant fountain by London designer Arthur Carabott (+ movie). More about Arthur Carabott's Superhydrophobic Fountain causes water to move in unusual ways
Designers and brands need to wean themselves off the plastic "drug", according to Parley for the Oceans founder Cyrill Gutsch, who is releasing his organisation's shoes made from recycled ocean plastic with Adidas today (+ interview). More about "Plastic is a design failure" says Parley for the Oceans founder
Sports brand Adidas and environmental initiative Parley for the Oceans have released the first batch of running shoes with uppers made using recycled plastic recovered from the sea (+ movie). More about Adidas launches trainers made from ocean plastic with Parley for the Oceans
The company behind the world's first widely available modular smartphone has released a set of concepts imagining completely new gadgets created with Google's Project Ara (+ slideshow). More about Seymourpowell creates gadgets from Google's Project Ara modular phone
British architect Michael Manser, a pioneering Modernist and founder of the Manser Medal, has died aged 87. More about Modernist architect Michael Manser dies aged 87
Danish design brand Hay has redesigned IKEA's iconic blue and yellow bag as part of a newly announced collaboration with the Swedish furniture giant. More about Hay redesigns IKEA's iconic blue Frakta bag
Nigerian architect Kunlé Adeyemi has confirmed reports that his award-winning Makoko Floating School has collapsed. More about Kunlé Adeyemi's floating school suffers "abrupt collapse"
Florida-based Saltwater Brewery has used by-products from the beer-making process to create six-pack rings that can safely be eaten by marine wildlife (+ slideshow). More about Saltwater Brewery's edible six-pack rings protect marine wildlife
Dezeen promotion: Tune in here for the live stream from IKEA's annual Democratic Design Day event in Älmhult, Sweden, for the latest news from the furniture giant. More about Watch IKEA's Democratic Design Day live from Sweden
Perforated steel panels create private enclosures around the balconies that front this compact housing development in Tokyo by local architect Hiroyuki Moriyama (+ slideshow). More about Hiroyuki Moriyama completes Tokyo apartment building with a perforated skin
San Francisco company Molekule has partnered with London studio PostlerFerguson to design an air purifier that breaks down pollen and dust at a molecular level (+ slideshow). More about Molekule air purifier destroys pollutants rather than collecting them
Local firm Tom Chung Studio has converted an industrial space in downtown Toronto into a multi-purpose venue with rooms and furniture that can be easily reconfigured. More about Tom Chung transforms factory floor in Toronto into flexible workspace
Dutch architecture firm OMA has restored the historic Fondaco dei Tedeschi in Venice, adding new entrances and wood-panelled escalators to turn the 16th-century building into a department store (+ slideshow). More about OMA completes restoration of Venice's Fondaco dei Tedeschi
Movie: in this exclusive video interview, Bjarke Ingels explains how his firm BIG used stacks of fibreglass boxes to create a huge undulating structure on the lawn in front of the Serpentine Gallery in London. More about Bjarke Ingels' Serpentine Gallery Pavilion is "mountainous outside and cavernous inside"
Footwear brand Converse has followed the redesign of its iconic Chuck Taylors with an update to the 1920 All Star, which replaces the shoe's signature canvas uppers with Nike's knitted Hyperfuse fabric (+ slideshow). More about Converse continues updates to classic designs with All Star Modern trainer
A team of architects in Chicago has proposed a house made of 3D-printed plastic and carbon-fibre panels wrapped around glazed walls (+ slideshow). More about WATG wins competition to design freeform 3D-printed house
Swedish firm White Arkitekter has won a competition to design a cultural centre and hotel in Skellefteå, Sweden, with its proposal for the "tallest wooden building in the Nordic countries" (+ slideshow). More about White Arkitekter selected to build timber-framed high-rise in Sweden
Comments update: readers have been discussing the ethics behind replica furniture this week after it emerged that discount supermarket Aldi was selling near-identical versions of a classic chair by Ray and Charles Eames. More about "Aren't the Aldi chairs closer to Eames' original design philosophy?"