It was founded in 1972, by Alan Fletcher, Theo Crosby, Colin Forbes, Kenneth Grange, and Mervyn Kurlansky at Needham Road, Notting Hill, London.

The inspiration behind establishing a partner-based model for Pentgram design came about when Theo Crosby created and was part of working group one at the "This is Tomorrow" exhibition hosted at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in 1956.

[6]As Britain had come out of the war, but with rationing still in place until 1954,[6] modernism as a design movement would be seen to "...would transcend individual differences in taste" and be "envisaged as a unifying force, helping to create a fairer, socially just world, and producing timeless objects unaffected by the vagaries of fashion.

"[7] Crosby attended many of the independent groups' meetings and was impressed by the debate and discussion around mass communication, design, art and culture.

"[12] Crosby worked in group one with graphic designers: Germano Facetti and Edward Wright, and sculptor William Turnbull, in what he referred to as his “...first experience with a loose, horizontal organization of equals.

[18] In 1982, the partners moved from an office at the rear of Paddington railway station to a new space in Needham Road, in the Notting Hill area of West London.

[19] In 1978 Colin Forbes moved from London to the US to form the New York office, eventually adding graphic designers Peter Harrison and Woody Pirtle as partners.

In 1990-91 Michael Bierut, Paula Scher, both graphic designers, and James Biber, an architect, joined the New York office.

Among others, they have developed or updated identities for Citibank,[21] Sam Labs,[22] Saks Fifth Avenue,[23] United Airlines, the Big Ten Conference,[24] and The Co-operative brand.

[25] In addition to graphic design work, the firm has partners working on architectural projects such as the Harley-Davidson Museum, the Alexander McQueen shops, Citibank interiors, the Adshel and Clear Channel buildings in London, a host of private residences including the Phaidon Atlas of Architecture listed Bacon Street Residence, the new London club Matter, along with a range of other interior, retail, restaurant and exhibition projects.

Pentagram was hired to redesign the American cable television programme, The Daily Show's set and on-screen graphics in 2005.

Recently, Pentagram has done work for the One Laptop per Child,[27] the High Line, New York's Public Theater,[28][29][30] and the National Gallery of Art.

[31][32] Pentagram was founded on the premise of collaborative interdisciplinary partners working together in an independently owned firm of equals, both financially and creatively.

[85][86] Pentagram also highlighted as part of their brief: "The website is run out of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and General Services Administration (GSA).

In looking at making the editorial content readable and attractive, Shcher's team compiled a library of stock photos to be used for their top priorities alongside agency profiles.

This was provided as a learning input for Midjourney, which five rounds which were deemed too rough (as in showing signs of brush lines and texture).

A return to the aesthetic of the first iteration was brought but this time with an amendment to their Midjourney prompt: "Create a pictogram of (Insert subject here), utilizing a bold and abstract style with a limited color palette of very bright red and blue, enriched with hints of green or yellow.

The imagery should echo the style seen in the provided images, featuring stark shapes and vibrant colors for clear visual contrast.

"[97][94] Expanding on her usage of Midjourney, she said it was move to highlight their transparency but also the limitations of their design brief, telling Creative Bloq on 14 December 2024: What was behind the decision to use AI for the illustrations?

I guess you could say, oh, well, this is going to ruin originality, or people are going to steal, or whatever you say about it and like, I'm sorry, but I don't think anybody will be more ripped off by any kind of AI than my husband has been by other illustrators.

[98] Expanding on her approach to design and navigating its controversies in an interview with The Great Discontent on 13 November 2013: Do you feel a responsibility to contribute to something bigger than yourself?

[99] Fast Company published a post on 17 December 2024 about Pentagram's AI usage on Instagram, inviting users to debate the subject.

[100] Equally when Pentagram reshared Global Design Editor at Fast Company, Mark Wilson's post a month ago which then generated 12 comments was met with general support.

Unfortunately, it's really easy to skim through social media and come to a hasty conclusion that big bad Pentagram typed some words into the Midjourney tab on their browser, punched illustrators in the face, and took off early.

But in reality, Pentagram took the complex problem of making government performance more accessible to the public, and found a solution that can evolve with the client's needs, it just so happens to involve AI.