Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad A.I.?

Last November, I attended Autodesk University (AU) in Las Vegas and yes, I did go to all my classes. As expected, one of the major topics of the event was Artificial Intelligence (AI). You could not walk very far in the convention center without seeing something about AI or encountering people discussing AI. It was on everyone’s mind. That said, the general impression I got was that the jury is still out on how exactly AI is going to affect architects, engineers, and the construction industry.

There were those that think it’s going to take jobs away. To me that’s funny. The last time I heard similar doomsday statements was about the same time this little program called AutoCAD was released and look what happened. AutoCAD was eventually embraced by the AEC industry and became the dominant method for creating drawings. Moreover, an unintended consequence was the creation of a completely new position called the CAD Manager, which eventually morphed into the BIM Manager, and we still have Job Captains and Project Managers.

Also, consider this for a minute. Right now, projects require the signature of a licensed architect who puts his or her name on a set of construction documents and states these plans can be used to build a safe structure for human occupation. If AI takes over the creation of CD’s, who signs the plans? It sounds a little funny, but if something goes wrong, then who are the lawyers going to go after? The software company that created the AI program? The AI program itself? Who takes responsibility? I think the reality is that until the laws change where a licensed professional is no longer responsible for the design, AI will not take over or replace anyone any time soon.

One final thought. One of the classes described an exercise where several teams took 12 hours to generate 2D and 3D models. They gave the computer the instructions, “Create an 8’ by 8’ square building with walls that are 8’ tall and 4 inches thick, then add a roof.” Below is what they got. Not exactly an award-winning design.

That said, right now programs like Midjourney and Firefly generate amazing images. Impressive images can also be created from SketchUp using Veras as shown in the examples below. Even Autodesk announced that “Autodesk AI” will be part of the programs they offer, but I have yet to see a program create an architectural or structural details that can be used on an actual project; the eventually benefits past generating cool images right now is TBD. Of course, as fast as things are moving, by the time this article is posted something amazing will probably be announced.

Image from Sketchup                                         Image from Veras

I should also mention I’m not some Luddite who thinks this is just a passing fad. This is real, relevant, and cutting edge, so everyone who is in the design profession must get educated.

The alternative is what I’ve read in different articles about AI:

“AI is not going to take away jobs. People who do not learn how to use AI will have their jobs taken away by those that do learn how to use AI.”