Google accidentally published a blog post detailing the concepts and research behind its new "expressive design" called Material 3 Expressive. The new design is expected to be unveiled later this month at the Google I/O 2025 developer conference.

Google describes Material 3 Expressive as a "new bold direction in design," developed through the company's largest-ever design research effort. With this design system, Google aims to move away from "clean" and "boring app designs" toward interfaces that engage users on an emotional level.

The new design was developed over three years and involved 46 separate research cycles with over 18,000 participants worldwide. The studies utilized various methods, including eye tracking, surveys, focus groups, experiments, and tests measuring interface readability and usability.

The core elements of the new "expressive design" include bold use of color, shape, size, animation, and containers. Material 3 Expressive is characterized by vibrant shapes and colors to create a "delightful user interface."

One example of a new component introduced in Material 3 Expressive is the "floating toolbar." Concept images show that the toolbar doesn’t span the full screen width but instead appears as an elongated block with rounded edges—similar to what’s already used in Google Chat.

Google claims that the new "expressive design" helps users locate key actions faster and navigate interfaces more efficiently. For example, in an email app prototype, users noticed a large, prominently colored "Send" button placed above the keyboard four times faster than a small button on the top toolbar.

The research also found that people of all ages preferred the new "expressive design" over conventional designs based on Apple’s iOS Human Interface Guidelines.

Finally, Material 3 Expressive positively impacted brand perception among users:

• +32% in perceiving the brand as "relevant" and "trendy."
• +34% in feeling the brand is "modern."
• +30% in associating the brand with "rebelliousness," positioning it as bold and innovative.

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