In this work a new paradigm for the simultaneous topology and anisotropy optimisation of continua is presented. The goal is to find the optimal topology, local elastic symmetry, and orientation of the main orthotropy axes of the continuum in order to maximise its stiffness subject to a constraint on the volume. The theoretical/numerical framework is based on 1) the polar method [1] to represent the anisotropy of the continuum through tensor invariants related to the elastic symmetries; 2) a density-based topology optimisation method; 3) non-uniform rational basis spline (NURBS) entities [2] to represent both topology and anisotropy descriptors. On the one hand, NURBS entities allows to avoid the checkerboard effect and mesh-dependency of the solution, they are compatible with computer-aided design software and facilitate the formulation of technological constraints of geometrical nature since the boundary of the topology is available at each iteration of the optimisation process [3]. On the other hand, the polar method allows to express any planar tensor through invariants related to the symmetries of the tensor describing the physics of the problem at hand and allows formulating some equivalent technological constraints in the polar parameters space. The proposed approach is tested on benchmark problems under inhomogeneous Neumann-Dirichlet boundary conditions, exploring the influence of various factors on the optimised solution, such as penalty scheme, loading conditions, optimisation strategy, and NURBS entity parameters [4]. During the speech, further applications of the general framework presented in this work will be discussed. The main features of the methodology and future research directions will be also presented. REFERENCES [1] P. Vannucci, Anisotropic Elasticity, Vol. 85 of Lecture Notes in Applied and Computational Mechanics, Springer, 2018. [2] L. Piegl, W. Tiller, The NURBS Book, Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 1997. [3] M. Montemurro, On the structural stiffness maximisation of anisotropic continua under inhomogeneous Neumann-Dirichlet boundary conditions, Composite Structures, 287: 115289, 2022. [4] M. Montemurro, A. Mas, S. Zerrouq, Topology and anisotropy optimisation of continua using non-uniform rational basis spline entities, Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 420: 116714, 2024.