The physics of matter at the mesoscale is undergoing a profound transformation. Soft matter is no longer merely something we observe or manipulate; increasingly, it is something we design and program. The directions captured by the acronym SPLASHY+F—soft, polymeric, living, active, statistical, heterogeneous, yielding + fluid matter—reflect the remarkable diversity of contemporary research in the field. Although necessarily incomplete, these descriptors point to a common theme: matter whose behavior emerges from the interplay of structure, dynamics, fluctuations, and function across multiple scales. To showcase the breadth, vitality, and future promise of this rapidly evolving area, guest editors Katie Newhall and Thomas Voigtmann invited a series of Perspective articles aimed at identifying emerging challenges and opportunities. The resulting collection spans a wide range of systems, phenomena, and methodologies while highlighting the conceptual threads that unite them. Every contribution underwent the standard Physical Review E peer-review process and was evaluated according to the same rigorous scientific standards applied to all articles published in the journal.
