ADDD’s weekly video is all about construction technology!

I thought that I would create a post that covers some of the new and thought provoking news out there related to Contech. Get in touch if you have any thoughts on this! Please follow our new YouTube channel – new content each week! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1zFhxCZnQATJJ7r4oyhJ2A

Veras plugin for Revit

We know there are new tools for text to image AI generating art work and now Evolve Labs have taken this and created Veras. This Revit plugin enables user to explore AI generating options for rendering within the Revit environment. This is important because it enables architects to directly use these advancements in technology in a impactful way. Download a trial of the plugin in the link below.

https://www.evolvelab.io/veras

Arthur Mamou-Mani TEDx talk

Arthur Manou-Mani gives a TEDx talk that focusses on their approach to truly sustainable design. His key statement is that ‘Community emerges through shared struggle’. For him this means breaking the divide between design and making and getting involved with communities – such as the Burning Man Festival.

His thoughts dwell on;

3D printing as a tool to send files locally
3D printing made from sugar which is therefore compostable / biodegradable
Parametric design – controlling the parameters means there is a connection
Designing with systems
Digital craft – sugar/clay/ circular materials
Cradle to cradle whole lifecycle approach to materials, this enables a build and ‘unbuild’ methodology
Measuring metrics such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) – See post last week https://addd.io/2023/02/04/top-5-sustainability-tools-for-architects/
Using metrics to make good decisions and act on these
Material and geometry
Reduce reuse repurpose
Digital fabrication – 2D to 3D
Small to large scale (facades)

Proving Ground

Nathan Miller asks whether we should use new AI generator tools unquestionably by reviewing the terms of service, sources of training data, and copyright concepts.

These tools can generate captivating images, well-written text, and even software code, using natural language prompts. He argues that it is a seductive concept and has already been widely adopted by architects and creative professionals.

However, it’s crucial to understand the risks and consequences associated with these tools. The terms of service for popular AI generators like Midjourney can have implications for data ownership, privacy, and copyright. He says that it’s important to carefully review the terms of service before using these tools for professional purposes. In many cases, the input and output generated by the AI may be used or recycled by the service provider without recourse.

Thinking forward, there are a number of items he believes will be incumbent upon creative professionals to be advocates for to support healthy and ethical adoption trends with this technology:

Users should call upon AI platform developers to be transparent with how the underlying source training data is collected and implemented into an AI generator.

Users should call upon AI platform developers to take action in gaining permission and consent from original authors whose content was used in the training model.

Third-party commercial tools built to use AI generators should strive for transparency about what backend generators are being implemented, how the training model was composed, and the TOS tied to the generator.

Users should strive to curate their own training data sets that meet their needs and standards.

So, while AI generators can be a convenient solution, it’s essential to understand their limitations and potential risks.

https://provingground.io/2023/01/10/a-splash-of-cold-water-considering-ai-terms-of-service-training-data-and-copyright/

Digital Construction Week 2023

Do you have something to say or show to a wider audience? Are you leading the way, using technology in exciting new ways and want to inspire others with your ideas? Or are you just starting out and have knowledge that could help others in the same position?

If you have insights to share relating to any aspect of innovation for the built environment, they would love you submit to be a speaker at Digital Construction Week at ExCeL London on 17-18 May 2023.

See the link below:

https://www.digitalconstructionweek.com/speaking-at-dcw/

The Boundary acquires BUILDMEDIA

I thought this was a really interesting acquisition; The Boundary acquires BUILDMEDIA. The Boundary has acquired BUILDMEDIA, an Auckland-based creative studio widely considered to be the world leader in city-scale digital twins, off-plan interactive real estate sales and marketing solutions in addition to immersive eCommerce virtual reality experiences.

This strategic acquisition brings together best-in-class photorealistic creative CGI and virtual reality expertise from The Boundary with the best-in-class technical capabilities and proprietary IP developed by BUILDMEDIA.

The new look business will be investing in research and development across their virtual reality/web3/metaverse services and applications.

The use of Digital Twins in the future will be a big part of the creative industry and therefore the Boundary have acted quickly to put themselves in an advantageous position.

That’s it for this week! See you next time.

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