AI in architecture and engineering
Amy Bunszel, Executive Vice President AEC Design, Autodesk
WHEN designing our homes, workplaces, schools and communities, the industry is facing rising pressures to help combat climate change, accommodate growing populations and meet increasing standards and requirements.
To address these challenges, practices are undergoing a technological shift – incorporating a more outcome-based way of working, in addition to 3D modelling, which is driven by AI, automation and data-supported software applications.
New tools have been transforming the way we work over the last two decades – from sketching concepts on a page to creating drawings in AutoCAD and more recently, collaborating on a building information model (BIM) in the cloud.
Architects and engineers have always been trailblazers in digital transformation, combining human creativity with tech innovation. Now, AI opens up a myriad of new opportunities that automate routine tasks, empowering the industry to solve even more complex design challenges, such as delivering more sustainable building outcomes.
Leveraging intelligent AI for a new way of working
At the turn of the last century, industry embraced 3D parametric modelling through BIM, then connected BIM in the cloud for coordination and productivity – bringing in an era of greater creative and technical collaboration. Now, AI promises to disrupt the practice (for good) once again.
At the turn of the last century, industry embraced 3D parametric modelling through BIM, then connected BIM in the cloud for coordination and productivity – bringing in an era of greater creative and technical collaboration.Although BIM revolutionised the industry, the issue of silos remains – currently, BIM struggles to meet expectations to unify data and workflows across the entire plan, design, build and operate lifecycle. Integrating granular data, automaton and AI into existing workflows, while leveraging the design tools that architects and engineers use today, will create a more connected and outcome-based approach.
Insights derived from data throughout the design process can simplify everything from the exploration of design concepts, to evaluating environmental qualities surrounding a building site or how a building performs in the real-world. Leveraging the ability of AI to augment, automate and analyse gives architects and engineers their time back – not just by increasing productivity, but by giving them the space to be more ambitious to focus on creative solutions.
When used correctly, AI can help analyse a myriad of design variations in a very short amount of time, offering new perspectives that focus on solutions to important project outcomes. This expands the realm of design possibilities, bringing us closer to meeting increasing demands from building owners, developers, citizens and municipalities, all while creating something sustainable, that can stand the test of time.
Addressing sustainability and early-stage design challenges
Societal challenges such as rapid urbanisation combined with population growth and climate change are putting pressure on the architecture, engineering, construction and operations (AECO) industry. The complexity of urban areas has also increased massively, and climate change is fundamentally affecting the way people live and work.
Societal challenges such as rapid urbanisation combined with population growth and climate change are putting pressure on the architecture, engineering, construction and operations (AECO) industry. At the same time, the economic demands on the architecture and construction industry are also increasing. Creativity is being tested by the need to maximise building density and use of space without negatively impacting people’s quality of life and the environment. This is precisely where AI and outcome-based design come into play, to solve problems and enhance current ways of working. The shift towards outcome-based design, powered by AI, enables solutions to be found faster and more efficiently.
AI also easily incorporates environmental and other contextual data into plans when optimising designs. AI not only provides real-time analytics that fuel essential insights into operational energy, microclimate, sunlight, wind and noise, it also enables the digital testing of a wide variety of scenarios within a risk-free environment to find optimal solutions within chosen parameters.
Take Project Phoenix, for example, a 316-unit modular housing development in West Oakland, California on a site that is heavily impacted by congestion and noise pollution. In a collaborative effort between MBH Architects, Factory OS and Autodesk, a multidisciplinary team harnessed the power of technology to share data and workflows and tap into AI-powered insights across the project lifecycle to make housing that was faster to design and build and is more sustainable.
In the early phases of the project, the team made data-informed trade-offs between goals for operational carbon, embodied carbon, cost and liveability. The team also leveraged its unit catalogue from past projects to reduce time and risk through reusable design intelligence.
Targeting carbon neutral, the housing units feature innovative materials, including facade panels made from a core of mycelium, the rootlike structure of mushrooms. The panels themselves are carbon-negative, as the process of making them involves more carbon absorbed than emitted, due to the large volume of plantbased material that drew carbon out of the air as it grew.
In the final stages of development, the team combined physical and digital automation to construct a set of buildings that is both efficient and loved by residents.
Building tomorrow with the help of AI assistants
Despite the benefits that AI brings to the profession today, it’s understandable that many are still wary of the threat it can pose to job displacement. We envision AI serving as an assistant in the design process, with designers retaining their role as decision-makers, controlling the creative process and ultimately making the final call.
Combining human intuition and expertise with AI’s computational capabilities allows us to explore more possibilities for sustainable and innovative designs.It is the architect who has the real-world understanding of local specifics and needs – be they cultural, aesthetic, regulatory, local and regional building codes, or the complex web of multilayered relationships with stakeholders and customers.
There’s no doubt that machines can help with the heavy lifting, but it’s humans who will be answering the allimportant question of how to create better homes and buildings.
Combining human intuition and expertise with AI’s computational capabilities allows us to explore more possibilities for sustainable and innovative designs, leading to better informed and more creative solutions. The integration of AI-enabled capabilities into the design process does not replace people, instead it empowers them to focus on outcomes.
So, what’s next for the architect’s toolbox? It’s an exciting time: It’s undeniable that AI is here to stay – both in our personal and professional lives. AI as an indispensable tool for transformation and as technology streamlines mundane processes and enhances workflows, architects and engineers will gain more time to design solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems.
In the face of rapid change, one constant is intuition and expertise – they remain irreplaceable – essential for balancing technological advancements with an understanding of human needs and cultural values in shaping the cities of tomorrow. The humble pen and pencil will remain in the toolbox – but now they are set up to work side-by-side with sophisticated AIsupported digital tools.
Amy Bunszel, executive vice president AEC Design, Autodesk