This latest research builds upon a 2024 investigation that found nearly two-thirds of 300 primarily UK-based architects and students were using AI in some capacity. The study revealed that larger practices are leading the adoption trend, with firms employing more than 100 staff showing AI usage rates approaching 70 percent among their employees.
A separate survey conducted by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) at the end of last month demonstrated continued growth in AI adoption, finding that 59 percent of architects now use AI, compared to 41 percent the previous year. While architects expressed optimism about AI's potential to help the industry achieve net zero environmental targets, they also voiced growing concerns about increased risks of design imitation.
Copyright Concerns and Government Policy
In April, prominent architects including David Chipperfield and Amanda Levete raised serious concerns about the government's proposed AI policies and their impact on intellectual property rights. The architects responded to government proposals that would allow AI companies to use copyrighted work from creative industries, including architecture, design, and film, without explicit permission.
These proposed changes would theoretically permit AI firms such as ChatGPT and Midjourney to create new content based on existing intellectually protected work without violating copyright law. However, the government indicated that creative firms would have the option to opt out of such usage.
In a letter addressed to Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, more than 30 high-profile names from the design world argued that the proposed law changes "risk running roughshod over the design and creative industries." The designers emphasized that their profession, similar to the music industry, is built on copyright, intellectual property, and patents, and that AI companies should not be allowed to circumvent copyright law.
Industry Perspectives on AI Integration
Architect Toko Andrews presented a contrasting viewpoint in an October opinion piece, arguing that in an era of increasing convenience and speed, architecture's true value lies in slow, methodical work performed by expert humans. Andrews observed that "convenience is the new currency" and has become one of the main drivers of 20th and 21st-century economics, creating some of the wealthiest companies in history.
Andrews noted that architecture appears to be following this trend, with AI and smart technologies attempting to take on increasing amounts of work to make professional lives more convenient. However, he questioned the true cost of increasingly convenient practice and who ultimately benefits from these changes.
AI Applications in Building Safety
Paul Morrell, the UK's former chief construction adviser, highlighted AI's growing role in building safety design during a September speech at the National Building Specification (NBS) Construction Leaders Summit. The chartered quantity surveyor explained that AI would help make fire safety desk studies more accurate, including improving statistics on the predictive behavior of various product and material combinations.
Morell told industry professionals that AI could help narrow down decisions for architects based on high-level information, such as navigating complex flowcharts to select appropriate fire dampers. He emphasized that product testing should be the next key area of exploration for AI's role in improving building safety.
Morell explained the evolution of testing methods, noting that computational fluid dynamics has largely replaced physical wind tunnel testing at the Building Research Establishment. He stated that scientists acknowledge the complexity of these systems, arguing that "the more complicated it is, the more variable it is, the more I wouldn't trust a single human being making the decision."
Small Practice Innovation
Andrew Jackson, founder of Andrew Jackson Architects, discussed in an October interview how AI tools benefit small practices and introduced his own AI application in development. DesignBuildAI, created in collaboration with a software developer and Innovate UK, aims to create an AI application that mitigates the negative impacts of value engineering in construction, with a minimal viable product expected in February.
The application's goal is to improve cost and carbon certainty during early design stages, minimizing compromises often imposed by cost-cutting in design and build procurement—a well-documented source of frustration for clients, end-users, and designers.
Jackson revealed that he uses ChatGPT almost daily for administrative tasks. He explained his design approach: "I always start every project with a sketch and would only use AI tools like Midjourney or RemodelAI for brainstorming ideas or ensuring I haven't overlooked anything. The best designs are discovered through exploring a variety of media, and it's exciting to integrate these new technologies with more tactile, traditional approaches like sketching and model-making."
For administrative work, Jackson found AI invaluable for processing data and drafting reports, schedules, emails, contracts, and applications. As a micro-practice operator, he described having AI as a "sounding board when writing important documents" as extremely helpful.
Groundbreaking AI Laboratory Design
In July 2024, London-based architecture firm PLP completed what it claimed to be the world's first purpose-built artificial intelligence laboratory in Shanghai, China. The 47,400-square-meter World Laureates Association (WLA) lab opened on July 2, 2024, and was described by PLP partner Andrei Martin as "a laboratory of possibilities, redefining our relationship with technology and blurring the line between human and machine."
The project was commissioned by Shenzhen-based property conglomerate Parkland Group and designed by PLP alongside a comprehensive team including Arup, the Shanghai Institute for Architectural Design, Hassell, BAM, HDA, and the East China Architectural Design & Research Institute. PLP emphasized that the building was specifically designed to meet the unique requirements of machine and deep learning development.
Debate Over AI's Creative Limitations
John Porter argued in an April article that AI as a design tool is inherently derivative, with output quality directly dependent on input quality. He noted that in architecture, there is no large-scale multidisciplinary collaborative approach to developing AI systems as far as current knowledge extends.
Porter maintained that while artificial intelligence can enhance efficiency, "the creative and collaborative nature of architecture and design can never be replaced by a computer program." He characterized AI as a promising tool that will enhance human capabilities but argued it "can never replace the human creative spark."
Industry Education and Preparation
Architect and AI expert Keir Regan-Alexander emphasized the critical importance of industry engagement with AI development. He stated that "it's not hyperbole to state that the physical environment of our future cities will be molded largely by the work of computer scientists and the algorithms they'll write in the next few years."
Regan-Alexander argued that with this backdrop, the industry's best architects and place-makers "must be more than part of the new conversation, they must also become active in the development of this consequential, software-driven shift."
Current AI Usage Examples
Various built environment practitioners, ranging from large architecture practices to solo practitioners, students, and tutors, have shared examples of their AI implementation. Applications range from creating surrogate models to using Midjourney for generating concept imagery for competition entries.
One example included designs by Built Works for prefabricated holiday homes in the Sussex countryside, where a computer-generated image was produced from a 3D model, and Adobe Photoshop's Neural Engine was used to develop winter variations of the design.
The diversity of applications demonstrates AI's versatility across different scales of practice and project types, from conceptual design exploration to technical documentation and presentation materials. As the technology continues to evolve, architectural practices are finding increasingly sophisticated ways to integrate AI tools into their workflows while maintaining the human creativity and expertise that defines quality architectural design.
