Two Months to 2026: Here’s What Every Architect Should Be Thinking About

Hey there!

It’s hard to believe we’re just two months away from 2026. This time of year always brings a mix of reflection and anticipation, looking back at what we’ve learned, and forward to what’s next. For me, 2025 has been about embracing change with curiosity, especially as AI continues to reshape how we design, collaborate, and lead in the AEC space.

Reflections from AEC Thrive 2025

Last month, I spoke to firm owners at AEC Thrive 2025, an annual leadership conference by PSMJ Resources that brings together AEC leaders to share strategies on growth, innovation, and the future of our industry. My talk, “From Hesitation to Innovation: How AI is Transforming AEC Workflows,” explored how leaders can move through the “Valley of Despair”, that stage where early enthusiasm fades before real value emerges.

What stood out the most was this: we’re all in the same boat when it comes to AI. Everyone’s figuring it out, testing, and learning. We’re not alone in this journey, and that shared honesty was refreshing. AI isn’t just a tool. It’s part of a business strategy that should amplify our team’s strengths and give us back time to design better, collaborate more deeply, and create spaces that truly improve how people live and connect.                                                             

As we’re close to wrapping up 2025 and looking ahead to a new chapter, I hope you’ll take a moment to pause and reflect on how far you’ve come — both as a leader and a creator.

💬 I’d love to hear from you, what’s one area you’re hoping technology might simplify or strengthen in the coming year? Hit reply, I'd love to hear your perspective!

Until next time,

P.S. My hometown, Cebu, was recently hit by two back-to-back calamities, an earthquake and a super typhoon, that caused catastrophic flooding and widespread damage. Several of our team members lost their homes. I’ve set up a GoFundMe page to help them recover and rebuild. Your support would mean so much.

👉 Click here to support the Cebu Relief Fund 

🎧 New Podcast Episode: Why Architects Must Redefine Craft in the Age of AI

What happens when craftsmanship meets artificial intelligence?

In this episode, Beau Dromiack, Principal at WMA Architects in Phoenix, Arizona, joins us to explore how AI is reshaping architecture, not just in how we design, but how we think about design. Drawing from his books The Craft Advantage and Super Architect, Beau unpacks how the profession traded craftsmanship for efficiency, and why reclaiming that craft is essential for leadership in an AI-driven future. He introduces “Success Empathy,” a principle that centers care, creativity, and optimism, the qualities machines can’t replicate.

This conversation challenges architects and educators alike to redefine the role of humanity, craft, and purpose in the age of intelligent design.

Key Takeaways

• Architecture lost influence when efficiency replaced craftsmanship; reclaiming craft is key to regaining leadership.

• Strategic AI use lets architects focus on high-value, creative work rather than routine tasks.

• ArchiDom AI is an example of a future where AI serves architects — augmenting, not replacing, human judgment.

• “Success Empathy” teaches students to prioritize care, creativity, and optimism, traits that distinguish human designers from machines.

• Architects who learn to collaborate with AI will shape how the technology is used; those who don’t risk losing influence.

• AI will shorten timelines and reduce costs, forcing firms to rethink pricing, staffing, and business models.

• Reclaiming craft improves quality of life and builds more sustainable, humane environments.

• Ethical and practical AI adoption requires aligning tools with firm goals — not chasing every shiny demo.

• Craftsmanship, creativity, and client empathy remain the architect’s most defensible advantages in an automated world.

👉 Listen on Apple Podcasts
👉 Listen on Spotify 

🏗️ Architecting With AI
See in real-time how AI is used in designing the built environment.

Chaos White Paper: How AI Is Transforming Roles, Risks, and Skills in Architecture. This newly released white paper surveys hundreds of architects on how generative AI is reconfiguring everyday roles, raising new questions around ethics and intellectual property, and reshaping the skill set needed for the next era in practice.

How Top Architecture Firms Are Using Generative AI Today. Leading studios are harnessing generative AI to quickly prototype urban planning scenarios, optimize the flow of natural light, maximize energy efficiency, and create immersive visualizations, all documented through vivid case studies and step-by-step examples.

How AI in Architecture Is Shaping the Future of Design. Explore how today’s AI tools, ranging from digital twins to generative modeling, are not only making the architectural process more efficient but redefining what’s possible in smart urban planning and sustainable construction.

🗓️ AI in Motion: Events You Can't Miss Right Now

2025 Venice Architecture Biennale Conference: Generative AI and the Future of Learning and Making. November’s Biennale (Nov 14–15) brings together global thought leaders to debate how generative AI is shaping design, data politics, and embodied intelligence, with keynotes by academics, artists, and robotics experts.

Big Data Conference Europe, Nov 18–21, Vilnius & Online. A top hybrid event on advanced machine learning, AI applications, predictive analytics, and the next generation of design technologies—ideal for architects interested in the data/AI crossover.

Artefact Hosts International Adopt AI Summit, Paris (Nov 25–26, 2025). This global summit covers AI adoption across fields, including architecture, offering insights into strategic integration, ethics, and transformative business case studies.

🏢 Beyond Design
Get your fill of AI news beyond the field of architecture.

AI Is Transforming Healthcare, Retail, Finance & More. Building on its writing style features, Anthropic's newest model family, Claude Opus 4 and Sonnet 4, excels at long-term autonomous operations, creating "memory files" for continuity and parallel tool integration, ideal for iterative creative processes like drafting technical reports or simulating design scenarios.

Embodied Intelligence & Edge AI: Machines That See, Move & React. An authoritative report on how AI is supercharging other top trends, faster robots, smarter energy systems, rapid advances in biotech, all while prompting profound shifts in governance, workforce skills, and infrastructure worldwide.

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