Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Architecture

ARTIFICIAL

INTELLIGENCE +

ARCHITECTURE

Critical Architectural Intelligence: AI and Digitalization in the Present and Future of Architecture, Society, and the Environment

19, 20 AND 21 MARCH 2024

ONLINE  Watch it live here

RSVP TO ATTEND ONSITE  here  

Complimentary Lunch Onsite.Let’s reduce our waste: please bring your reusable cup, bottle, and napkin.

https://www.arch.kth.se/en

#aiarchconference

@equbuild
 

DOWNLOAD FULL PROGRAM OF SPEAKERS HERE: Program of the Speakers (pdf 350 kB)

Organizer: Ingrid Campo Ruiz. icr@kth.se  

Support: Elizabeth Calderón Lüning, David Selander.  

Camera and sound: Joakim Nordström

Advisory Board: Katja Tollmar Grillner Helena Mattsson, Ulrika Knagenhielm-Karlsson, Daniel Koch, Anders Bergström

PROGRAM

19 MARCH

Unveiling the Potential of AI

@ Digital Futures

Osquars backe 5, Stockholm

12.00 Ingrid Campo Ruiz Architect Postdoctoral Researcher, KTH, Sweden. Introduction: Architecture and AI. Architecture, AI, social justice. On site.

12.15 Emil Björnson Professor of Wireless Communication, Associate Director of Events Digital Futures, Sweden.A brief introduction to the Digital Futures Center.Online.

12.30 Kutoma Wakunuma Associate Professor in Information Systems, De Montfort University, UK/Zambia.AI and the Politics of Power: Implications for Society and Space.Responsible AI, computer ethics, digital technologies for development. Online.

13.20Ricardo Vinuesa Associate Professor in Fluid Mechanics, KTH, Sweden. The role of artificial intelligence in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.Machine learning, fluid mechanics, sustainability. On site.

13.50 Katja Tollmar Grillner Head of Department, Department of Architecture, KTH, Professor in Critical Studies in Architecture, Sweden.Introductory Remarks.On site.

14.00 Pablo Miranda Carranza Senior Lecturer, Department of Architecture and the Built Environment, LTH, Lund University, Sweden.HIDECS2: Artificial Intelligence and Architecture, 1962. Technology, representation, and ideology in architecture. On site.

14.20 Erik Swahn Architect, Sweden.Qualities of the undrawn. Architecture, computation, and generative processes. On site.

14.40 David Selander Lecturer KTH, Sweden.Uncritical Perspective on AI.Creative appropriation of AI. On site.

14.50 Panel Discussion
 

20 MARCH

AI for Sustainable Environments

@ A124, KTH School of Architecture

Osquars backe 5, Stockholm

12.30 Andreas Sudmann Scientific Coordinator Principal Investigator, University of Bonn, Germany. The Democratization of Artificial Intelligence. A Critique.Critique, politics, machine learning. Online.

12.55 Peter Lynch Architect, Research Engineer, KTH, Sweden. An AI-based method of motion analysis for biological diversity monitoring and landscape design.Biological diversity monitoring, wildlife corridor design, site analysis. On site.

13.30 Heather Suzanne Woods Interim Director A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication, USA. Living in Digitality: What Future Does the Smart Home Imagine For Us? Emerging Technology, Futurism, Domesticity. Online.

14.15 Sarah Popelka Geospatial Developer, Urban AI / Innovate! Inc., USA. Opportunities of AI for Human-Centered Urban Planning and Design. Public Participation, Urban Design, Artificial Intelligence. Online.

15.15 Wanyu He Adjunct Professor at HKU, DDes at HKU, Ms at Berlage Institute, XKool, UAE/USA/Hong Kong. Revolutionizing Architecture: AI-Driven Performative DFMA.AI, Performative Design, DFMA. Online.

21 MARCH

Power Dynamics for Tomorrow

@ Salong, KTH Biblioteket

Osquars backe 31, Stockholm

12.15 Valarie Waswa Executive Director, She Goes Digital, Kenya. Bridging Horizons: The Transformative Power of AI in Shaping an Inclusive Future. Lawyer, social entrepreneur, global speaker. Online.

12.35 Ingrid Campo Ruiz Architect Postdoctoral Researcher, KTH, Sweden. The AI in the Room: Creating frameworks for people and the environment. On site.

13.00 Reinhold Martin Professor of Architecture, Columbia University, USA. The Intelligence Complex: Retaking the Turing Test. Intelligence, Turing test, imitation, and media complex. Online.

14.00 Paolo Botazzini Contract Professor, Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy. What stochastic parrots tell us about the world of AI. Social network analysis, epistemology of history, political technology. In Italian, Translator: Camilla Sampietro. Online.

15.30 Ingrid Campo Ruiz Closing remarks. On site.

* Elizabeth Calderón Lüning

Democratic Society, Belgium/Sweden. Democracy, AI, Urban.

ABSTRACT Critical Architectural Intelligence: AI and Digitalization in the Present and Future of Architecture, Society, and the Environment

The aim of this conference is to critically address the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in societies through architecture from a critical perspective, where we address tensions between social, economic, and political powers and the impact of AI on space, people, and the environment. 

While AI has been part of everyday life for the last decade, technologies like ChatGPT are a turning point with their human-like production of conversations, poems, essays, and predictions of our next words, readings, and drawing lines. Some experts describe this change as a ‘platform shift’. 

AI is developing at an unprecedented pace and some technology experts are asking for a break in the development of AI systems to reconsider its risks to society. An open letter from 29th March 2023 signed by thousands of technology experts asked for a 6-month moratorium on AI models beyond ChatGPT4. The full extent of the impact and the risk of AI is unknown. One of the most evident risks is the bias of sources, the production of videos and images that cannot be differentiated from reality, untraceable references, and the marginalization of other voices. The input is also biased towards the content leaders on the internet, for example, prevalent languages, demographics and socio-cultural values, political opinions, or influencers who know how to take advantage of the logic of algorithms. It does not only integrate big data, but it also has machine learning, which adapts and answers autonomously.

We have largely relied until now on human-to-human recommendations to make decisions. However, now AI can mimic human behavior and provide us with recommendations in all aspects of our lives. While many of these new recommendations can expand our scope of options beyond our framework, these recommendations can also affect us in unknown ways our new paths. Some groups of people may prefer interaction with machines rather than with other humans precisely to avoid social embarrassment and insecurities. 

The implications of AI in each field may differ. Until now, market rules have influenced many aspects of our daily lives, from the business strategy of large companies to environmental challenges. However, the factors shaping decisions are vastly enlarged by AI. These AI algorithms designed by specialists decide how to curate content, and it is uncertain if cultural, historical, and local aspects are included.

Architects are used to envision scenarios under big social, environmental, and economic challenges, helping organizations to prepare for complex futures. This conference aims to gather architects and researchers in the humanities to discuss the impact of AI and digital transformation on society from an architectural point of view. AI has made a quick entry into architecture, arts, and design. Many design and research processes have been made more efficient through AI, for example, checking against standards and forecasting. 

This conference will situate AI in a broader context, featuring tensions between powers and agendas. With a panel of speakers from different domains, we aim to engage researchers in architecture and artificial intelligence to jointly address how AI affects each one of us in our practice or research. 

We aim at discussing in this conference the following issues:

1. How can architects and creators contribute to addressing this emerging concern regarding the development of AI? In what tasks will AI replace architects and creators and what paths forward can it open? How is AI affecting research methods in architecture, history, and design? 
2. How much are we influenced by AI in our everyday choices, political opinions, travel destinations, and career paths? How is AI shaping critical discourse? How is AI influencing opinions and perceptions of reality about social, democratic, artistic, and urban domains at different scales?
3. How is AI affecting gender and non-binary issues? In what tasks AI will mean a substantial help for a more integrative society?
4. How is AI shaping our interaction with each other and with the environment?

This project has received funding from:

Digital Futures

KTH Digitalisation Platform

KTH School of Architecture

The European Commission

The European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the European Commission Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, Individual Fellowship Grant Number 101032687 — EQUBUILD.

KTH, Ingrid Campo Ruiz, or any of the sponsors are not liable for the materials and opinions expressed by the speakers and attendees of this event. Photography and video will take place on-site, and photographs and video will be published on press and social media, including YouTube. The photographs will be published on KTH’s social media channels. KTH is the data controller for photographs. The fact that the picture will be published on social media means a transfer of personal data to third countries since the channel is owned by a company established outside the EU.