Swiss sustainable materials company Bcomp and Kia Corporation have deepened their ongoing collaboration with the integration of ampliTex natural fibre composites throughout the interior and exterior of the Vision Meta Turismo concept car, unveiled publicly for the first time at Kia’s ‘Journey of Projection’ exhibition during the Milan Design Week.
Following joint work on the EV concept models, this marks the first time ampliTex extends beyond interior components to exterior body parts, pushing the aesthetic potential of bio-based materials to envision the future of driving.
The Vision Meta Turismo, unveiled at Kia’s 80th anniversary celebration in December 2025, is a modern reinterpretation of 1960s long-distance touring, with a dramatic silhouette that evokes the elegance of that era while projecting forward into a digitally immersive, human-centred future. Its futuristic, lounge-inspired cabin interior — complete with augmented-reality windshield — creates a deeply immersive driving experience. This signals a new design language for Kia: one that unites speed, emotion, and cutting-edge technology. At the heart of this vision, is a material choice that goes far beyond aesthetic.
Building on successful interior part collaborations across the EV2, EV3, and EV4 concept models, Bcomp’s ampliTex flax reinforcement fabrics now also extend to the exterior of the Vision Meta Turismo for the first time. By integrating ampliTe materials into the front, rear and side bumpers, Kia is exploring how innovative materials can be used in exterior parts while prioritising responsible design choices and a natural aesthetic.
For CMF (Colour, Materials & Finish) designers, the Vision Meta Turismo offers a compelling proof point. Bcomp’s ampliTex™ is not a niche material, it is a platform. Its compatibility with existing large-scale manufacturing processes, including injection moulding, means it integrates into established production workflows. A growing palette of custom colours, weaves, and finishes gives CMF teams genuine creative latitude: a material that is as visually distinctive as it is responsible. The circularity credentials are also compelling. Interior parts made with ampliTex can be designed to be circular from the outset and can be recycled into composite pellets for reuse while exterior parts offer end-of-life energy recovery pathways.
Kia Meta Turismo interior
The Kia team developed the Vision Meta Turismo as a styling and design exercise, pushing the boundaries of what is possible with new concepts and materials to create a more emotive design language. While not a definitive blueprint for production, the concept showcases Kia’s intent to challenge the conventional limits of design, and the learnings from this vehicle could inform the models that reach drivers in the future. As ampliTex continues to be deployed across large-volume production cars, the collaboration between Bcomp and Kia advances a shared conviction that the most compelling vehicles of the future will be those that are beautifully designed and responsibly built.
Nicolas Samson, Senior Sales Manager Automotive Interior at Bcomp said: “This project demonstrates that natural fibre composites are not only a design statement, but a proven solution for both interior and exterior applications. The Vision Meta Turismo is a meaningful step forward – for our collaboration with Kia, and for the broader industry’s journey towards making these materials standard in future production programmes.”
Marília Biill, Vice President and Head of Colour, Material and Finish (CMF) Design at Kia Corporation, said: “The Vision Meta Turismo was intended to be an internal design study which aimed to answer a fundamental question: how can Kia create a vehicle that is more emotional, yet still aligned with the brand’s core values? Bcomp’s bio-based composite expertise and customisable material possibilities have allowed us to take design risks and experiment with what could be possible for the interior and exterior of future KIA models, bringing more circular and environmentally aware materials to the mass market that are aligned with our vision.”
Learn more: www.kia.com and www.bcomp.com
Read Design Solutions; Q&A on BComp ampliTex in our April issue: https://content.yudu.com/web/69r/0A170s4/DesignSolutionsApr26/html/index.html?origin=reader
More Materials in design stories can be found here: https://designsolutionsmag.co.uk/category/materials-in-design-prototyping/
