Data Chat
Data and AI - an architects view...and other things...
In this episode of Data Chat Iain sits down with Allister Lewis, an architect who moved from private practice into the software side of the industry and now works as a “technology translator” for architecture. Allister curates a database of roughly 1,900 pieces of AEC software, co-founded AEC Tech Hub, and runs technology-strategy programmes for practices. The conversation explores why construction remainsthe last great trillion-pound industry yet to digitise, the cultural inertia holding architects back, where data and AI genuinely add value (and where it’s still theatre), and the disruption that could reshape the profession — frommass-housing software to AI-generated “auto-drawings”. Along the way Iain draws parallels with the contracting world and SPS’s own InsightsControl data platform. Key subject points discussed included: · Construction is the last great trillion-poundindustry still to digitise — and why that’s a massive opportunity · The cultural inertia holding architects back: perfectionism, “craft over efficiency” and a leadership gap · Data-driven design — hype vs reality, and the untapped value sitting in every practice’s back catalogue · Where AI genuinely helps: automating the admin vs reshaping design (rendering, auto-drawings and beyond) · The coming disruption — mass-housing software and construction’s long-awaited “Uber moment” · Why small, nimble, AI-native practices are set to outpace the big firms · Evolve or die: what technology adoption really means for architects and contractors alike · The catch with AI — subsidised models, data governance and the environmental cost
