In a quiet corner just outside Milan’s bustling design fairgrounds, fresh from the unveiling of Sensorium Piazza, Tommaso Di Giovanni — Philip Morris International’s VP Communications & Engagement — is calm, collected, and unmistakably clear on the mission: “We want a future where cigarettes are behind us. That’s the goal.”
It’s a bold statement from a man who represents one of the world’s most historically controversial companies. Yet, under Di Giovanni’s leadership — and through its flagship smoke-free product, IQOS — PMI has made it a matter of fact, not just intention. The company has invested over $14 billion into research and development since 2008, and now counts more than 32 million adult users of IQOS globally. But for Di Giovanni, the challenge isn’t just about making better products, it’s about correcting outdated perceptions.
“The biggest challenge of my job probably is confusion,” he explains. “Many, unfortunately, still are confused with regards to what is nicotine, what is combustion, what is the value of smoke-free alternatives. In good faith, they simply don’t know. But for instance, in many countries, over half of the population still thinks that nicotine is what causes smoking-related diseases. This is not correct. Nicotine is addictive, it’s not harmless, but it’s certainly not what causes smoking-related diseases.”
“What is really the problem is the burning of a substance,” he continues. “Whatever burns, changes chemical composition, becomes something much worse. When you burn a cigarette, you virtually generate a chemical factory with thousands of compounds, hundreds of which, approximately, are very harmful. This doesn’t happen in products that do not burn. And that’s why those products are a much better alternative, yet addictive and not risk-free, but a much better alternative to cigarettes.”
This distinction is central to everything PMI is working to change: the science, the communications, and perhaps most provocatively, the cultural context of using nicotine. At this year’s Milan Design Week, that context took the shape of Sensorium Piazza, a collaboration between IQOS and the iconic Italian design brand SELETTI. The installation reimagined a public piazza as a digital, emotion-driven space — part art exhibit, part social experiment. But as Di Giovanni clarifies, it’s about more than spectacle.
“The collaboration with SELETTI really sparks from the recognition of the importance of curiosity as a driver of innovation and a driver of change,” he shares. “This is what’s very unique with SELETTI. Curiosity is what actually allows him to reinvent items that we use in our daily lives with something that’s almost magical, that sparks emotions and that generates a different experience when used.”
“And if you think about it, there’s a similarity with what we’re trying to do with IQOS,” he adds. “Because with IQOS, we really started with curiosity. Can we solve an issue of humanity by reinventing a product that many people use and making it much better? And this is really what we have in common.”
That philosophy of reinvention is now central to PMI’s approach. From heat-not-burn devices to nicotine pouches, the company continues to explore technologies that provide less harmful alternatives to cigarettes. Their product evolution has already undergone multiple iterations. “Technology has already been used by IQOS to grow,” he notes. “If you think about all the different iterations of IQOS, which are eight, technology has improved all the time.”
“We moved from a very initial product that had a heating blade inside to a product that now uses an even more modern induction,” he continues. “Even the design — if you think about the first heated tobacco products, they would have the battery and the charger together, which made it very bulky and very difficult to use. And then with time, we’ve actually improved that by separating the charger and the holder, by making it very sleek, and also by making sure that people can have a better experience.”
But the pivot isn’t just technical — it’s philosophical. To shift from cigarettes manufacturer to disruptive innovator, PMI is also rethinking how it presents itself in the cultural space. Hence, the growing number of collaborations with designers and creatives around the globe including an upcoming rollout of more than 20 artist collaborations through 2025.
“Design is important because it’s one of the reasons why people would switch and adopt a product,” he emphasises. “And if you want to convince adult smokers to abandon cigarettes, the design needs to be beautiful. And this is also why we’re looking at the design in general, at arts in general, to also get inspired and always improve on the design.”
“And I think in that area, in that space, we can get a lot of ideas that we wouldn’t get otherwise, while not making it appealing to those that we don’t want to consume tobacco”, he adds.
That inspiration, he notes, comes from seeking out bold and creative minds. “If you think about what we’re doing, we are being bold. And I think you need to be bold when you’re going to spark unprecedented change,” he says.
That boldness has already begun to change minds. “People still associate us with the old company that used to sell only cigarettes. And not many are aware of the change we’re driving,” Di Giovanni admits. “But I can also tell you that many doors have opened in the last 10 years. People who were closed to discussing with us… now actually welcome us, welcome our science, welcome our views. And I think that’s a very important sign of progress, of change.”
He’s hopeful that the next decade will accelerate this shift. “I want to think that many countries, in 10 years from now, will probably put cigarettes somewhere behind,” he asserts. “And that our company will have a significant — even more significant than today — portion of revenues coming from smoke-free products.”
And perhaps even new sectors entirely. “Maybe we may be thinking about even the future, i.e. how do we use all the science, the technology that we have developed over the years to do something else? For instance, in wellness and healthcare.”
As for what’s next, Di Giovanni’s curiosity is as much cultural as it is technical. “I’m curious about which country will become the first to put cigarettes in a museum,” he says with a smile. “I have my own bet, which I’m not going to disclose. But I’ll let you have your own bet.”
Wherever the finish line is, the mission remains. And for PMI, the most transformative product isn’t a device— it’s knowledge. Because once people understand the science, Di Giovanni believes, they’ll make the switch on their own.
The trip to Milan was facilitated by Philip Morris Management Services (Middle East) ltd.