​Aerogels have ultra-high nano-porous structures, which enabled them to be optimal candidates for thermal protecting materials. However, most aerogels are mechanically brittle and are not suitable for thermal insulation of structures with complex geometries where material’s flexibility is required. To allow a certain flexibility in the aerogel structures, research endeavours produced materials that can be divided into two main categories: “induced” and “inherently” flexible aerogels. Most of the flexible aerogels that are commercially available belong to the “induced flexible aerogels”, where the flexibility of the structure is induced by additives and components other than the aerogel material itself. Therefore, the challenges for producing single component “inherently flexible aerogels” are addressed in this i-FACES, and aerogels based on classes of polyolefins and polyvinyls will be developed with inherent mechanical flexibility at the ambient thermal conditions. Moreover, advanced composites of the developed aerogels with smart functionalities based on thermochromic materials will be developed in the course of this project. This will allow direct indicators of the thermal states with a visual mapping of the temperature gradient across the surfaces. Furthermore, recycled materials will be utilized in this research for the creation of aerogels with more ecological impact.