Artificial intelligence is making its way into the residential space, especially architecture.
ICON, the developer of one of the first fully 3D printed home developments in the United States, is taking automation one step further. The company recently announced what it calls “Vitruvius.” It's an AI program that helps consumers design and obtain plans for custom homes online, making the process cheaper and faster.
“Vitruvius' big vision is to converge from human desires to delivery, including construction documents, budgets, schedules, and even robot instructions,” said Jason Ballard, CEO of ICON. .
According to Ballard, Vitruvius can recall every design and possibility he has ever seen. He has training in building codes, construction methods, and structural engineering, so he understands what's possible.
“It's far beyond human capabilities,” Ballard added.
Users start by entering a general idea about the type of home they want to build. Vitruvius then decided that the house should be located, how large it should be, what architectural features it should have, what facilities it should have, what style it should have, etc. Ask questions about everything. It then incorporates knowledge from past designs and learns from the responses to suggest three potential home designs.
The program can also show people, living or dead, what their home would look like if it were 3D printed or made in the style of a famous architect. Other of his AI models have also come under fire for possible copyright infringement, but Ballard said he is not concerned about this.
“We're not actually stealing anyone's actual work; we're just drawing inspiration in the same way a human artist would find inspiration,” he says. “There is no doubt that tools like this will change the way we do things.”
Vitruvius debuted at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas, where both real estate agents and architects tried it out.
“I think [AI is] It will become more of a tool. Some jobs are changing. Obviously, architecture is not the same anymore,” architect and builder Leonardo Guzman said of the technology.
Real estate agent Gina McAndrews also tried it out and said she was impressed with the technology, but expected it to be used in conjunction with architects, rather than replacing them.
“It definitely saves a lot of money, but at the same time you still have to interact with people to change things, but certainly there are limits to what I've seen, so it's definitely an idea You just produce it, it’s amazing,” McAndrews said.
Ballard said the impact of AI in construction goes beyond just consumers looking to save money on construction bills. He believes this will be a game-changer for affordable housing, which often cuts corners to cut costs.
“What happens with affordable housing projects is they omit architecture altogether. Even affordable housing projects should have beauty and dignity, and we believe this tool does that.” “We believe it will be possible because over time the cost of using this tool should approach the cost of energy to power the system,” Ballard said.
