Chaos survey finds "AI is becoming an active collaborator" in architecture workplaces

Render of an banana-shaped building by Chaos

Promotion: visualisation and design software company Chaos has released data on AI use in architecture, reporting that it is increasingly being used to support decision-making as well as image generation.

Chaos collaborated with architecture platform Architizer to survey people working in the architectural field on how they use artificial intelligence (AI) in their workflows.

Around eight hundred architects and designers from around the world were included in the industry survey, which found that 64 per cent of participants have experimented with AI tools in their work.

Render of a futuristic city by Chaos — Chaos carried out a survey on the use of AI in architecture

Of those already using AI in the workplace, 86 per cent said it saved them time, while 31 per cent said it significantly sped things up.

The survey also found that 74 to 93 per cent of participants were likely to increase the use of AI in practice within the next year.

The most popular uses of AI in the survey were image generation and enhancement. However, Chaos argued that AI is increasingly being used in design-making scenarios, acting as a design "collaborator".

Render of a city block — It found that 64 per cent of architects and designers use AI in their workflows

The survey found that 26 per cent of participants used AI for material selection and asset generation.

By embracing AI in this way, architects can achieve more complex, data-rich designs in shorter timelines, according to Chaos.

Render of a city by Chaos — AI is being used in decision-making scenarios as well as image generation, according to the survey

"What we're seeing is a shift from isolated experimentation to meaningful integration," said Chaos director of product management Bill Allen.

"AI is becoming a natural extension of the design workflow, helping architects move faster from idea to decision, while keeping creative control firmly in their hands."

Render of a city at night — Early design development was found to be the most useful stage for using AI

In its survey, Chaos found that AI was useful in the early design stage for quickly producing numerous renders and realistic visualisations.

"Today, AI's strongest impact is in visualisation and concept development," said Chaos. "These tools are helping teams communicate ideas faster, test directions earlier, and refine design intent with greater agility, supporting, rather than replacing, creative decision-making."

"Increasingly, AI is becoming an active collaborator, reshaping how architects think, test, and deliver design."

The majority of those surveyed were pleased with the work produced by AI tools, with 69 per cent reporting they were somewhat satisfied and 19 per cent very satisfied.

Chaos believes that as AI systems are increasingly being integrated into the architectural workplace, there is a growing expectation on the precision and reliability of the outcomes they produce.

The company predicts that in the near future, AI will be an integral collaborative tool in architecture workflows and design processes.

"The opportunity isn't about doing less design work, it's about doing better design work," said Allen. "AI helps remove friction so architects can spend more time shaping outcomes, not just producing them."

To learn more about Chaos, visit its website.

Partnership content

This article was written by Dezeen as part of a partnership with Chaos. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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