ARCHITECTURE and AI
How artificial intelligence defines new scenarios for design
The progressive development of artificial intelligence has paved the way for radical changes in how work is conceived and carried out in architecture. The evolution of technology is rapid and has an impact at various levels. But what are the fields of action and the main tools in which it is being integrated into the processes of design and construction?
The first diffusion undoubtedly concerns the visualisation possibilities offered by text-to-image software, which make it possible to generate complex images from textual input.
A tool for verifying and validating initial ideas, quickly displaying a configuration of spaces and their characteristics, or constructing visual proposals.
Among these, the most popular platforms are Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, Dall-E. Also of interest is D5 Render, which integrates with CAD and BIM modeling programs such as Rhino, Revit, and Archicad to speed up the production of 3D renders.
Taking this a step further, another application concerns generative design tools. Combining AI and machine learning, they allow different design options to be generated, giving designers a range of options to evaluate and test.
We are talking about software such as Hypar, a platform that generates proposals with analyses and simulations to optimise the performance of buildings, ARK AI, which generates design schemes for initial feasibility studies following regulations (currently in the United States), and offers surface and volume calculations. More closely related to residential and interior design are Architechtures, which generates a geometric configuration in real-time by the design goals and criteria set, and Planner 5D, which includes a GPT-4-powered chatbot called ‘Bernard’ that can answer interior design questions in real-time and also allows a 2D image to be transformed into a 3D scene.
In urban design, on the other hand, Autodesk Forma combines generative design with advanced analytics, making it possible to quickly assess different factors such as environmental conditions, contextual analysis and data, and energy requirements, and to generate different site layouts useful for defining feasibility studies.
However, the use of AI now seems to be aimed at managing the entire design process, automating the most repetitive and low-value-added aspects, supporting decision-making through data analysis, and providing monitoring and predictive models for the various stages up to construction.
In this regard, the first all-in-one platform is Xkool, born in Shenzhen, which combines big data and AI to support different aspects of urban planning and design, from analysis and evaluation to optimizing the performance and complexity of buildings, to generating master plans, models and data.
The impact of AI is therefore transformative, but how will the sector change as we imagine its ever-increasing contribution?
It is necessary to build progressive competence in tools and techniques, and many professionals are already doing it.
Training means acquiring the preparation to apply a strategic and critical vision to the use of technology, to select and develop the direction to follow from the many and very rapid inputs generated by the system, translating therefore automation into an intelligent, integrated, and high-value-added result.