Session Partner: Brickworks
Session 3C (S3C)
When: 2.45–3.45pm, Saturday, 03 May
Where: Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre, University of Sydney
CPD: 1 Formal Points
As artificial intelligence and automation reshape the design landscape, what role will humans play in shaping our built environments? This interactive workshop explores the evolving relationship between human creativity and machine intelligence in architecture and urban design. Discover how emerging technologies are enhancing design processes, challenging traditional roles, and sparking ethical debates about authorship, accountability, and the future of the profession. Through thought-provoking discussion and real-world examples, the balance between innovation and human intuition will be examined in crafting the spaces of tomorrow.
Dr Nicole Gardner
Dr Nicole Gardner is the Discipline Director of Computational Design in the School of Built Environment, ADA, UNSW. She is a design researcher, educator, and Registered Architect (NSW ARB 7921) with industry experience in Australia and the United Kingdom. Her research explores the digital transformation of the architecture profession and its impact on design, learning, and the organisation of work. She has co-authored over forty peer-reviewed research articles on design technology innovation and is the sole author of the book Scaling the Smart City: The Design and Ethics of Urban Technology (Elsevier 2024). Nicole is a Chief Investigator for the Australian Research Council (ARC) Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Next-Gen Architectural Manufacturing.
Dr Christopher Bamborough
Dr Christopher Bamborough is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of New South Wales, working within the ARC Centre for Next-Generation Architectural Manufacturing (Arch_Manu).
His research examines the role of data in architectural practice, focusing on its technical, cultural, and material impacts. His PhD thesis argued that while data has long been integral to architecture, its digital form introduces a significant and evolving non-human influence on practice. AI and automation are central to this shift, raising critical questions about authorship and the evolving role of designers. Dr Bamborough’s work highlights the moments where architects enter into machine collaboration and explores the professional consequences of these interactions.
Trained as an architect in both the UK and Australia, Dr Bamborough has a background in design and digital fabrication. After gaining industry experience, he transitioned into academia, where he has spent over 15 years teaching, lecturing, and shaping curricula.
Through his design practice, Studio DATA, he investigates the material consequences of digital systems. He also writes about his work in The Architect’s Measure, a Substack publication.
The Australian Institute of Architects acknowledges First Nations peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands, waters, and skies of the continent now called Australia.
We express our gratitude to their Elders and Knowledge Holders whose wisdom, actions and knowledge have kept culture alive.
We recognise First Nations peoples as the first architects and builders. We appreciate their continuing work on Country from pre-invasion times to contemporary First Nations architects, and respect their rights to continue to care for Country.
