AI in the Practice of Architecture Panel

Panel Discussion Overview

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly prevalent in architectural practice, many Canadian architects are experimenting with its potential while confronting profound questions about the profession’s future. Beyond questions of efficiency, AI introduces deeper uncertainties about authorship, responsibility, and the nature of architectural work itself.

This panel brings together practitioners, researchers, and educators to reflect on the emerging role of AI in architecture. Rather than offering definitive answers, the conversation will explore a series of tensions: What happens to architectural agency when machines can rapidly generate design? Can algorithmic tools produce architecture that remains culturally and regionally specific? And how might the profession evolve as architects move from creators of form to curators, interpreters, and stewards of computational processes?

Drawing on perspectives from practice and theory—including philosophical reflections on the role of work as a bridge between human thought and the material world, the discussion will consider how architects might navigate a moment of technological disruption while preserving the critical judgment, accountability, and creativity that define the discipline of architecture.