The Client
Human Hardware is a CBD and biohacking brand created by pharmaceutical and biotechnology specialists at Manchester’s university science division. Their team brings molecular biology, protein science and DNA analysis into products aimed at people who take their health data seriously.
Brief
Human Hardware asked us to turn a highly technical idea into a clear, commercial brand. They needed a logo and packaging system for a growing range of CBD and biohacking products, all built on DNA analysis and a proprietary human-protein matrix. The identity had to feel grounded in real science, but simple enough for a consumer to understand at a glance.
Our Approach
We created a brand platform, logo and packaging concepts that translate Human Hardware’s protein science into a bold, modular identity. The core product is a scientifically designed protein matrix that mirrors the amino acid profile of human proteins. Our job was to build a visual system that signals that level of precision and can scale across future product lines.
We began with the science. Using 3D renders of key proteins in the formula – actin, myelin and nebulin – we analysed the underlying forms and movement. Directly lifting these complex structures into a logo would create clutter, so we distilled recurring shapes and rhythms into simple graphic principles that could feed the wider identity.
From Paper To Concept
From there, we generated a wide set of mark and wordmark sketches by hand. Working quickly on paper and on screen lets us explore structure, weight and hierarchy before committing to ideas. A brain dump lets us quickly see what works and what to reject.
In parallel, we ran a focused typography study: testing geometric and humanist sans-serifs, different weights and case combinations to see which direction supported the brand’s mix of clinical precision and human health.
We moved the strongest directions into digital and stress-tested them: legibility at small sizes, impact on pack, and flexibility across a product family. This is where weak ideas break and strong ones prove themselves.
One route used arrow motifs derived from gender symbols to signal different health products for men and women. On pack, the marks felt generic and added no clear meaning, so we dropped the route.
Another direction used a negative-space “H” cut from a block to suggest the human body. The result felt more like structural steel than biotech, so it went into the discard pile.
Explored Options
We briefly explored circuit-board inspired structures to lean into the “hardware” name. On packaging, those layouts pushed the brand toward consumer electronics, and the detail competed with key information, so we parked the route.
The strongest route came from the periodic table. A simple square “element” tile with the letters HH, a number and product name gives an instant “science” cue that most consumers recognise.
Even though proteins are not in the periodic table, the visual language is deeply embedded in how people read chemistry and lab-grade products. The format gives Human Hardware a flexible system: each new product becomes its own “element” tile, with a consistent structure and space for variant data.
For the wordmark, we paired a light, future-leaning sans-serif with the heavier element tiles. The contrast keeps the identity clean and clinical while giving the HH blocks enough weight to anchor packaging, digital interfaces and print collateral.
We developed the final logo and packaging concepts from this route and applied them across a set of core products to prove out the system.
Bring your science brand out of the lab
Human Hardware needed an identity that could stand up in a biotech lab and on a CBD shelf. If your product lives at that intersection of science and consumer, you need a design team fluent in both worlds. Talk to us about branding for biotech, CBD and complex formulations.
