Artificial intelligence is not simply another technological development—it is a paradigm shift. With access to AI tools growing over the past three years, changes have accelerated in everything from labor and education to national security and economics. All of this comes in the context of an ongoing and very public debate about the timeline for the widespread emergence and integration of artificial general intelligence.

As such, AI is transforming all fields. But what might it mean for the built environment? Does AI represent more of an opportunity or threat with respect to built environment professionals’ mandate and their potential impact? Professionals have agency over the way these new technologies are adopted, implemented, and utilized. How might they best put it to use?

AI is forecasted to eliminate much “unnecessary” work, but to what end? In addition to naming the grunt work that architects should do less of, it is incumbent on leaders to *rethink* not only the core skills of practice, but also new possibilities for impactful work that demands more time and energy, even or especially if that labor doesn’t look like architecture’s work of the past. The first in a series of Current Work lectures investigating AI and the built environment, this event will look to the labor in design and ask: What work should architects do more of? 

Panelist

C. G. Beck is a Brooklyn-based registered architect, writer, and labor organizer. His research looks at the creative process in art and design fields and examines the effects of digital technology on methods of making and systems of capital on labor and production. Working with Architectural Workers United, he successfully organized the Bernheimer Architecture Union. An assistant professor at The New School, Beck writes “The Worst Architect,” a newsletter about design and society, and recently published The Labor of Architecture (2025), a book about architecture and labor organizing.

Bilge Köse is a historic preservationist, designer, and interior architect whose work bridges cultural heritage, design, and emerging technologies. Her research focuses on the use of geographic information systems, data management, and digital storytelling to understand, present, and communicate data and narratives within cultural heritage sites. An adjunct assistant professor at Columbia GSAPP and a landmarks preservationist in the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Research Department, Köse currently co-leads a project on AI and cultural heritage preservation at Columbia.

This event will be moderated by Peggy Deamer. Deamer is professor emerita of Yale University’s School of Architecture and principal of Deamer, Studio. She is the founding member of the Architecture Lobby, a group advocating for the value of architectural design and labor. Deamer is the editor of Architecture and Capitalism (2013) and The Architect as Worker (2015), and the author of Architecture and Labor (2020). A recipient of the Architectural Record 2018 Women in Architecture Activist Award and the 2021 John Q. Hejduk Award, her writings and design work have been featured extensively in publications including Home and Garden, Progressive Architecture, and the New York Times, Log, and Avery Review, among others.

Support

This program was made possible by the members and supporters of The Architectural League of New York. Additional support was provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

The event iwas co-presented by The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of The Cooper Union.