Keynote: David Zach

David Zach’s keynote session, “Where Do We Go From Here? Automation + Curiosity + Connection + Enchantment,” at the AIA Colorado Practice + Design Conference examined the evolving role of automation, curiosity, and human connection in architecture. Zach explored the Gartner Hype Cycle, illustrating how innovation progresses through inflated expectations, disillusionment, and productivity. He shared the Google car’s failure to navigate human interactions at a four-way stop and referenced Alan Turing’s Turing Test to highlight AI’s growing complexity, including its ability to create other AI systems. Concerns about algorithmic governance were raised, with Zach quoting Peter Drucker’s “If you can measure it, you can manage it,” and Kevin Kelly’s idea of racing with machines, exemplified by the centaur model of human-computer collaboration.

Matthew Crawford’s “Why We Drive” highlighted the human desire for autonomy, contrasting with AI’s efficiency-driven future. Zach critiqued modern architecture’s lack of warmth, quoting Melissa Pierce’s observation that many buildings feel cold and Cameron Sinclair’s assertion that “the most sustainable building is a building that is loved.” He suggested the current era of disruption might be a Renaissance, urging architects to rediscover timeless principles. Ian Leslie’s “Curious” emphasized the need for diverse curiosity, while Billy Faircloth’s TEDx talk on two-by-fours showcased the potential of emerging materials like mass timber.

Zach stressed the importance of tactile connections in design, referencing Johanni Palasma’s “Thinking Hand” and critiquing the reliance on digital tools. He shared his experience moderating a Vinyl Institute conference and critiqued the utopian Skycar City project, advocating for the inclusion of philosophy and theology in design to address deeper questions of humanity. Roger Scruton’s views on beauty and the critique of disposable infrastructure were discussed, alongside the concept of post-audience architecture and the enduring appeal of Art Deco and Art Moderne styles.

Personal anecdotes, such as Zach’s buttons initiative during the pandemic, illustrated the power of connection and creativity. He invoked Martin Buber’s “I and Thou” to emphasize the immeasurable value of human interaction and Annie Duke’s “Thinking in Bets” to highlight the importance of safe failure. The session concluded with a call to balance measurable outcomes with immeasurable values, fostering curiosity, connection, and enchantment in design while embracing the playful negotiation of the future.

Maintain Tactile Connection in Design

The shift to digital tools has broken the sensual and tactile connection between imagination and design objects. Architects need to ‘get dirt under their fingernails’ to truly understand materials and maintain the thinking hand.

Johanni Palazma in the Thinking Hand said the use of the computer has broken the sensual and tactile connection between imagination and the object of design… you need to get dirt under your fingernails to truly understand what is it we are working with.

Expand Your Curiosity Beyond Your Comfort Zone

Architects must cultivate diverse curiosity alongside their specialized knowledge. Connecting dots from varied experiences drives creativity, and the key question becomes ‘what else needs your curiosity?’

Steve Jobs said, creativity is just about connecting the dots. A lot of people don’t have very diverse experiences, so they don’t have enough dots to connect… What else needs your curiosity?

Beware of Algorithmic Governance Drift

There’s a dangerous tendency to let computers take over decision-making processes due to distractions and busyness. This requires maintaining transparency, explainability, and accountability in automated systems.

There’s something called algorithmic governance drift. I put it in red because this is the dangerous thing about AI. It deals with when we’re dealing with regulations, distractive distractions, busyness that we let the computer takeover… When we are setting up some kind of system, we have to ask, is there transparency? Can you explain it? And is there accountability?

True Open-Mindedness Requires Closure on Solid Ground

Genuine open-mindedness isn’t about perpetually keeping your mind open, but about being willing to close it on something solid after careful consideration. Many people are only open-minded about things they already agree with.

The purpose of an open mind is to close it on something solid. If you always have an open mind, is your brain going to fall out? We have to make decisions.

This Disruption May Be a 21st Century Renaissance

Current technological disruption and confusion might actually be the early stages of a new Renaissance. Like the Italian Renaissance, what seems scary and disruptive from within may be viewed as an amazing period of discovery and innovation in retrospect.

Maybe all of this that’s going on right now, all this confusion, all this disruption, maybe this is Renaissance. Maybe these are the early years of a 21st century Renaissance. If you look back at the Italian Renaissance, you think, wow, that was amazing… If you were in that time looking forward, you were scared to death because it was the end of the world as you knew it.

Prioritize Human Connection and Conversation

In an increasingly digital world, architects must intentionally create more opportunities for face-to-face conversation and human connection. This includes taking breaks, sharing meals, and engaging with people beyond digital interfaces.

We need more conversations. 20% more conversation in your lives. It means looking away from your phone and being engaged… When you break bread, you break barriers. We the average American worker, all of you, average American worker, spends less than 15 minutes having lunch.

Focus on Your Unique 20% That Can’t Be Automated

While 80% of current work may be automatable, architects must identify and develop the unique 20% of their skills that machines cannot replicate – the human elements that add irreplaceable value.

It has been said that 80% of what you do can be better done by a machine or by somebody with lower skills and lower pay. You want to survive, you want to thrive, you got to figure out what’s the unique 20% that can’t or shouldn’t be automated.

Beauty is a Deep Human Need in Architecture

There’s a fundamental human need for beauty that shouldn’t be ignored in architectural design. The most sustainable building is one that is loved, and architects should defend artistry as part of their core professional responsibility.

Sir Roger Scruton said there was a deep human need for beauty, and if you ignore that need in architecture, your buildings will not last… Cameron Sinclair at one of the AIA national conventions said, the most sustainable building is a building that is loved.

Embrace the Paradoxes Inherent in Architecture

Architecture is fundamentally about managing paradoxes – form and function, strength and beauty, art and science. Architects must learn to dance with these contradictions rather than resolve them, as this tension creates the richness of great design.

Here’s the paradox stuff. And architects get this more than most people. But think about all the paradoxes out there. Form and function, strength and beauty, art and science…. and Fred and Ginger. They’re the perfect metaphor to dance with them. Dance is artistry. It is two equals that come together and play, and it looks like art.

Navigate Fads, Trends, and Principles Strategically

Successful architects must distinguish between momentary fads, temporal trends, and eternal principles. The strategy is to play with fads, work with trends, and live by principles – though most people are seduced by fads and resistant to principles.

Think about the distinction between fads, trends and principles… you play with fads, you work with trends, you live by principles. Easier said than done, because mostly we are seduced by fads, ignorant of trends and resistant to principles.