Architect, Author & Mentor. Creating dream eco-homes, barn conversions, biodiverse gardens.
I've been thinking a lot recently about AI and what that means for homes of the future. On the one hand, as a junior architect, I remember thinking ' a robot could do this better than me' regarding door schedules which were really just about data entry and checking. And ta-da! A few years later the software can do it for you (albeit still with minimal set up and some checks). So I was right, a computer can do it better than me and it's waaaaay more fun for me to do be doing something other than door schedules. On the other hand - what about the human touch to design? What about the craftsmanship that real hands create? So far, AI can't do this. The human hand is incredibly complex. But I guess at some point we could teach it empathy? I've long been against the identikit housing you see on the edge of every town, it's so dull. It's an oversized cottage, still with small windows. It's built poorly and has gaps in insulation. This is far from the best of British design, the thing we're famed for, excel at in other industries. But we've had to just roll over and accept poorly designed housing. We've lost the regional variation so apparent in our accents. That used to be a beautiful feature of housing design across the country. Now swallowed up and surrounded by this alien. And yet humans made both the beautiful and the ugly. So back to AI - the pre-fab world is a fantastic way of making new homes super efficient. I can see AI bringing big breakthroughs here. Pre-fab homes can also be beautiful with a bit of design thought. In fact they most often are because this is a method favoured by self-builders. How we used to build and why vernacular buildings are so beautiful. But we don't all have the time or money for that now. So this is the best of both surely? Computers and humans working together maximising both of their strengths? pic of a barn re-build project with flint and hand-made brick arches. Together with modern, industrial, super efficient windows. Pre-fab super insulated roof (not visible) - best of both? Granted this level of craftsmanship is not viable on a massive scale.