Alfaqix

I released the Alfaqix family of typefaces between June 12 and September 25, 2023. The name is arbitrary, but it carries a hint of “alphabet” and has a sci-fi sound, which felt appropriate for the modular techno style I was working with.

The family includes four variants: Alfaqix Ellipsoid, Alfaqix Algorithm, Alfaqix Diode, and Alfaqix Servo. Ellipsoid was the starting point, built with rounded stroke ends. From that base, I developed Algorithm with chamfered octagonal ends, Diode with a segmented-LCD influence, and Servo with reversed circular notches cut into the corners paired with flat stroke ends. Each variant was produced in four weights—Light, Regular, SemiBold, and Bold—with italics.

The goal was to create typefaces suitable for technical, electronic, military, or pharmaceutical contexts, where modularity feels deliberate and useful. The Diode style communicates that modular concept most directly, since its segmented look immediately calls to mind digital numerals.

The process wasn’t simple. There were scaling errors and a tedious setup stage, but once the system of interchangeable components was in place, it let me build several families at once. I’d used similar methods before—swapping out pixels in Deception or the light bulbs in Paltime—but this was the first time I used the approach to alter the letterforms themselves.

I haven’t seen Alfaqix in use since release, and I wouldn’t call it groundbreaking, but I think it proved the viability of this technique. Any modular typeface can benefit from rethinking how corners, stroke ends, and junctions are handled, and Alfaqix gave me a framework for exploring those possibilities.