What if you completely reinvent an icon? Not just making a few adjustments, but envisioning, creating, and unveiling a completely new concept for how a legendary footwear silhouette looks and feels underfoot.
The Nike Air Max Dn stands as a bold and sleek representation of the next generation in the footwear cushioning revolution initiated by Nike over three decades ago. It introduces a reimagined platform for self-expression, offering a new experience of what it means to walk on Air.
Nike's innovation, design, engineering, and research teams were singularly focused on crafting a shoe with an unparalleled appearance and sensation. Their solution came in the form of Dynamic Air technology.
Debuting in the Nike Air Max Dn, Dynamic Air is embodied in a novel dual-chamber, four-tubed Nike Air unit engineered for unparalleled comfort, seamless strides, and optimal rebound. This innovative dual-pressure air unit comprises two chambers, each containing two tubes. Tailored for performance, the rear tubes maintain higher pressure (15 psi) while the front tubes operate at lower pressure (5 psi). With each movement, air circulates freely among the tubes within each chamber, offering a responsive and interactive experience, ensuring a smooth and comfortable sensation with every step.
"We call it 'dynamic motion'. The independent setup of the chambers means that the air unit can respond to the load of your body with each step. The feeling of heel-to-toe movement is seamless because the air unit is interacting in real time with your foot and moves with you. The Nike Air Max Dn was the first time we were able to unlock that feeling." - Reggie Hunter(Product Director for Nike Lifestyle Footwear)
The creation of the shoe involved a collective endeavor between Nike designers, engineers, and scientists at both Nike Air Manufacturing Innovation (Air MI) and the Nike Sport Research Lab (NSRL) with the aim of crafting an improved Air system for enhanced comfort and mobility. However, it was understood that the distinctive sensation of Dynamic Air underfoot couldn't be the shoe's sole defining feature. The shoe's appearance had to be innovative, offering something new and captivating for Air Max enthusiasts.
Leveraging over three decades of Air Max research and advanced manufacturing techniques, Nike's innovation teams engineered an unparalleled sensation in the Dn. Cutting-edge digital tools like Finite Element Analysis enabled rapid and precise testing of the air unit before creating physical prototypes for laboratory trials. For durability assessments, the team could digitally replicate a year's worth of wear on the shoe within hours. Accelerated data acquisition facilitated prompt athlete feedback, enabling iterative refinement of the design through continuous testing and improvement cycles.
"Counterintuitively, these exacting methods of testing create more opportunities for us to be surprised. For example, in the Dn, you’d think the softest tube in terms of psi should go in the heel for crash landing and better transition. But actually, we found that transition was best when the firmest tube was under the heel and the softest was under the midfoot." - Kathy Gomez, Nike VP, NXT Footwear
Nike's collaborative effort meticulously refined every aspect of the shoe to offer enduring comfort and aesthetic appeal. A TPU shank arch clip ensures midfoot stability, complemented by a TPU heel counter for Achilles support. Surrounding the air unit, injected Phylon foam enhances underfoot comfort. The street-ready rubber outsole extends around the heel, delivering both traction and long-lasting durability.
The upper design aimed to capture the fluid sensation of the heel-to-toe transition. Material experts proposed a contemporary textile with a textured overlay and silicone finish to evoke this feeling. Every element of the shoe, including the air unit, was meticulously crafted with the same level of innovation, scientific rigor, and research applied to Nike's top-tier performance footwear.
The outcome is a daring new Air Max model that revolutionizes and redefines the future of Nike Air with every stride.
"Ultimately, being disruptive enables you to create a new conversation. Being disruptive also opens the door for curiosity. If a generation of people who love Air Max are shocked by the Dn, we know we’re doing something right. But the reason we made Dn is less about appealing to a specific demographic and more about designing a shoe that people want to pick up, interact with it, learn about it and wear. And wear. And wear." - Hunter
For Gomez, these fresh dialogues regarding a platform like Nike Air occur when a new shoe revolutionizes the industry. The Nike Air Max Dn sets the stage for the next era of Air Max.
"Dynamic Air raises our benchmark for what Air feels like. We’re always raising our expectations of what we can deliver for athletes. We’re using every tool at our disposal and every bit of our expertise to create new sensations with Air, while doing it more precisely. Maybe most important, we’re creating something that’s legitimately pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with comfort and motion. And this is just the beginning of the future of Air." - Gomez
The Nike Air Max Dn All Night colorway, along with other variants, will be available on March 26 on nike.com and at Nike stores in both adult and kid sizes, marking Air Max Week 2024. The Nike Air Max Dn All Day colorway will debut on SNKRS and at chosen retailers. Stay tuned to SNKRS for updates.
- Product: Nike Air Max Dn (All Night / All Day)
- Price: $160
- Styles & Colors:
- DV3337-008: Black/Dark Smoke Grey/Anthracite/Light Crimson
- FJ3145-100: White/Pure Platinum/Summit White/Metallic Silver
