Avient launched its annual color trend forecasting tool – ColorForward 2026 – to support product design in plastics industry.

Avient’s ColorForward Color Trend Forecasting Tool for the Plastics Industry Forecasts an Eclectic Color Palette in 2026.

ColorForward 2026, created by the ColorWorks team at Avient, outlines four global societal trends that will likely influence the color choices for plastic products. These narratives are translated into aesthetic concepts using the expertise of a global team of color, material, and finish (CMF) and industry specialists.

The result is a set of twenty color aesthetics that aim to guide and inspire designers and marketers in their color selections for new polymer applications.

Avient’s ColorForward team has developed the following four societal trends:

• Carnival of Fuels examines humankind’s quest for alternative energy sources to meet the increasing power needs driven by the growing electrification of our world and a surge in data centers.

• Bio-funk delves into technologies, from the uncanny brain organoids to quantum computers, that could break through to help meet the data processing capacities in an increasingly digitalized world. The unpredictable evolution of AI factors in both stories and a need to favor solutions that positively impact carbon emissions.

• Viviendo de Noche captures people’s ability to embrace a more nocturnal lifestyle as a strategy for navigating high temperatures during extended heat waves. This adaptation reflects our efforts to explore different ways of coping with changing conditions in this somewhat chaotic period.

• Wonderland delves into the different tactics used to find little moments of joy and respite through celebrating “minorstones” (as opposed to milestones), self-gifting, and seeking original experiences.

The team predicted eclectic as the color palette in 2026. “Lighter, harmonious shades and more complex neutrals partner with vibrant colors to embody cautious optimism and brightness in a complex world,” said Roberto Romanin, Designer at ColorWorks EMEA.

Avient also offers ColorForward seminars at its six ColorWorks design and technology centers worldwide, as well as selected conferences and customer sites.

Avient launched its annual color trend forecasting tool – ColorForward 2026 – to support product design in plastics industry.

Avient’s ColorForward Color Trend Forecasting Tool for the Plastics Industry Forecasts an Eclectic Color Palette in 2026.

ColorForward 2026, created by the ColorWorks team at Avient, outlines four global societal trends that will likely influence the color choices for plastic products. These narratives are translated into aesthetic concepts using the expertise of a global team of color, material, and finish (CMF) and industry specialists.

The result is a set of twenty color aesthetics that aim to guide and inspire designers and marketers in their color selections for new polymer applications.

Avient’s ColorForward team has developed the following four societal trends:

• Carnival of Fuels examines humankind’s quest for alternative energy sources to meet the increasing power needs driven by the growing electrification of our world and a surge in data centers.

• Bio-funk delves into technologies, from the uncanny brain organoids to quantum computers, that could break through to help meet the data processing capacities in an increasingly digitalized world. The unpredictable evolution of AI factors in both stories and a need to favor solutions that positively impact carbon emissions.

• Viviendo de Noche captures people’s ability to embrace a more nocturnal lifestyle as a strategy for navigating high temperatures during extended heat waves. This adaptation reflects our efforts to explore different ways of coping with changing conditions in this somewhat chaotic period.

• Wonderland delves into the different tactics used to find little moments of joy and respite through celebrating “minorstones” (as opposed to milestones), self-gifting, and seeking original experiences.

The team predicted eclectic as the color palette in 2026. “Lighter, harmonious shades and more complex neutrals partner with vibrant colors to embody cautious optimism and brightness in a complex world,” said Roberto Romanin, Designer at ColorWorks EMEA.

Avient also offers ColorForward seminars at its six ColorWorks design and technology centers worldwide, as well as selected conferences and customer sites.