Mahdi Naïm Studio, an industrial design practice led by designer Mahdi Naïm, has unveiled AERIS, a bicycle saddle in active development built around a single design hypothesis: additive manufacturing and traditional craft produce a coherent object only when both are conceived together from the first design decisions, rather than combined at the end of the process. The saddle combines a 3D printed lattice structure made through high-precision photopolymerization using SLA/DLP technology and high-performance elastomer resin with full-grain vegetable-tanned leather hand-stitched in France. The saddle is moving toward small-series production and is open to industrial partnerships, press coverage, and real-condition testing partnerships.
AERIS is built on a lattice geometry developed through the strict application of Design for Additive Manufacturing principles and biomimetic structural optimization. That geometry is presented not as decoration, but as the direct structural basis of the saddle. Lattice density varies across three functional zones: a high-density ischial zone for firm support in aerodynamic position, a transition zone with progressive density to accommodate postural shifts, and an open perineal relief zone designed to minimize pressure points. No foam or added padding is used. In this design, the printed structure itself forms the saddle.
After printing, the structure is passed to a master saddler for the application of full-grain vegetable-tanned leather, hand-stitched in France. That layer is treated as a structural and mechanical component rather than a finish. The material pairing is intended to distribute pressure and shear forces differently from synthetic foam or elastomer-only solutions at equivalent weight. Its interface with the printed resin structure was defined during the modeling phase rather than introduced after fabrication.
“It is not that technology and craft can coexist. It is that they must think together from the very beginning of the design process. AERIS is the proof,” said Mahdi Naïm, Studio Director.
The project is organized as a four-stage development process covering design, print, craft, and convergence. Design includes parametric DfAM modeling, variable-density lattice development, and biomimetic structural optimization. Print refers to high-precision SLA/DLP production in elastomer resin. Craft includes the selection of full-grain leather, vegetable tanning, and hand stitching by a master saddler in France. Convergence describes the result as one object shaped by two expertises co-designed from the first sketch.
3D printed saddles move from zoned padding toward structural design
Recent saddle launches have used 3D printing to tune rider support through localized pressure management rather than reshape the saddle as a whole. Shimano, a Japanese manufacturer of bicycle components and drivetrain systems, introduced its Pro Stealth 3D Saddle with three mesh zones developed from pressure-mapping data collected during bike fitments and refined through rider feedback. A high-density front section supports riders in a forward, aerodynamic position, while lower-density areas through the middle and rear are designed to distribute weight more broadly and reduce unnecessary mass. Expanded polyurethane and a hexagonal cell structure were also used to absorb vibration across longer rides.
Prologo’s latest Scratch M5 PAS 3DMSS followed a similar logic while keeping the saddle’s established geometry unchanged. Prologo, an Italian cycling components brand, applied 3D printing to the upper surface, dividing the saddle into front, center, and rear zones with varying geometries and densities shaped by pressure-mapping data from its MyOwn fitting system. That layout was produced using digital light projection, oxygen-permeable optics, and engineering-grade resins, while a central pressure-relief channel remained part of the design. Together, those launches frame 3D printing as a way to refine contact zones and comfort layers. AERIS shifts that approach further into the saddle’s core structure, where the lattice itself replaces foam or added padding and works alongside hand-stitched leather from the start of the design process.
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Featured image shows Design illustration outlining the saddle’s lattice geometry, pressure-relief channel, and leather interface. Image via Mahdi Naïm Studio.
