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Artificial Intelligence in the world of design and architecture: opportunity or challenge?
Design | Inspiration

Artificial Intelligence in the world of design and architecture: opportunity or challenge?

MAY 2023 | 5 minutes

How can new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools affect the world of design, architecture and spaces? Much is and will be said about it. Sometimes with fear, sometimes with respect, but always seeing the opportunity that its use can provide for professionals. There is no doubt that its influence on spaces is one of the great changes that the sector has undergone in recent years. 

Studios such as Zaha Hadid, Nagami or Auar are already using this kind of tools in their day to day, discovering hundreds of new possibilities and challenges that they explained to us in London, during the event "Mediterranean WellEssence" held during the Clerkenwell DesignWeek in the Actiu Showroom.  One more year, the Actiu Showroom in London becomes one of the epicentres of innovation, design and sustainability. Three days in which, in addition to discovering Actiu's new products, the latest trends in the future of architecture and design were discussed, where the creation of spaces is based on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality.

The debate "The impact of AI in designing space typologies/spaces" was moderated by Cristina Mateo, Vice-Dean of IE School of Architecture and Design, and showed how to apply this technology to examine its possibilities to enhance creativity and quality. This assumed an optimistic vision, full of possibilities for Architecture and design. 

Cristina Mateo described some of the notions that can give us a glimpse of how AI could change the way architecture, and interior design professionals work. Beyond streamlining tasks and optimising resources and costs, AI can enhance their creativity. For instance, it can help improve early designs, test them and share them with a tremendously fast and fierce margin for improvement. And that is the tip of the iceberg of what is to come, as the others explained.
 

Where to define mock-ups, previous designs, make tests and minimise wear and tear in time and materials. And with a tremendously fast and fierce margin for improvement. And that is the tip of the iceberg of what is to come, as the others explained.

Zaha Hadid Architects

Artificial Intelligence as a tool for creativity. That is the vision of Jennifer Durand, designer, computation and design in Zaha Hadid Architect. "The speed and evolution with which tools are changing is overwhelming. We are creating artificial intelligence systems in our own image, with great immediate existential risk. Generative designs capable of automatically creating varied layouts and options through algorithms; predicting the use of spaces and adjusting them based on the flow of people. The opportunities are vast. Moreover, the cruising speed we have taken, and the improvement of technology from three years ago to today, allows us to think that AI is going to change the world of design and work that we understood until today," he explained. 

Zaha Hadid Architects

In fact, Zaha Hadid founded a studio that has made a difference thanks to its neo-futuristic buildings of curved forms and fragmented geometry. Winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, her legacy lives on in her studio, which has found in AI a new way to delve into a different kind of architecture. "This tool gives us the opportunity to take the dreamlike and difficult-to-execute forms of our projects even further," he confirmed.

The extensive possibilities with which AI renders proposals, proposes optimal visualisation solutions or generates hyper-realistic images from 3D models are some of the key points highlighted by Manuel Jiménez García, from the Nagami design studio. From an exhibition based on the history of recycled plastic, Manuel Jiménez made a plea for its use and the new possibilities offered by AI.

Nagami Design Studio

"What if we could work with a material that has unfortunately become limitless on our planet like plastic and is just waiting for a large-scale application to leave our ecosystem? What if we could extend this technology to print furniture, interiors or even buildings? We can now design objects that not only present unprecedented shapes, but also come together in novel ways to create larger structures. Even the most boring and unpleasant things, like bespoke public toilets for every event...", he pitched to the audience.

Nagami Design Studio

The possibilities offered by Artificial Intelligence, 3D printing and recycled plastic are infinite, and the proof is some of the work of this studio and the different projects they are working on. Giving a second chance to materials in decay and disuse and making it a material to enter other fields such as construction, health, contract, transit and contributing to the planet, makes companies like Nagami are going to be part of the solution and another way of manufacturing, profitable, sustainable and future.

Automated Architecture (AUAR) Ltd

Similar are the possibilities of AI in the industrialisation and manufacture of modular housing. For Gilles Retsin, AI allows us to customise and rethink the automated construction of houses from sustainable materials by standardising production processes and with a wide variety of AI-generated options. And with the possibility of designing and manufacturing locally. Moving from "all houses the same" to "each house unique but built in a standardised process". "With all this culture, tools and resources for innovation, and technology, we have the capacity to reindustrialise our markets and not depend so much on producing territories located on the other side of the world. Robotisation and AI will allow us, from Europe, to compete on quality, innovation, creativity or even price. An example of this type of potential territories would be the Mediterranean Arc, where there is a good base of creativity, innovation, and great logistics and a territory that offers a high quality of life and has the capacity to attract talent. Surely all of this can influence Europe's political and economic weight in the world," Gil explained.

Automated Architecture (AUAR) Ltd

The meeting demonstrated how AI takes us to a world where on the one hand craftsmanship and "handmade" take on a key and differentiating role, and on the other hand what is developed through AI can equally be beautiful, aesthetically appealing, inspiring and help to standardise the customised, without having to consume more resources and being more efficient. "The hyper-realism of the images allows a greater preview of the projects, more impact, more capacity to convince our clients, a lower risk of error and a possible reduction in costs," explained Soledat Berbegal, advisor and director of Brand Reputation.

"Actiu, as it has been doing for years, wants to be a platform for learning, sharing experiences and its own experimentation linked to improving production and management processes based on Artificial Intelligence. We have already begun to apply it systematically to orders, projects, robotisation and many other areas of the company in which we are already innovating and reinforcing our digitalisation process", he explained.

In conclusion, the event showed how, in a world where Artificial Intelligence is a new tool, differentiation will come from the human factor that decides the process, gives the orders, shows the way and uses technology to improve processes. Although, yes, at breakneck speed.

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Privacy Policy

About our Privacy Policy and personal data processing

This Privacy Policy explains what types of personal data ACTIU collects from its clients, contacts, suppliers, collaborators and candidates for job offers, why it collects said data and for what purposes. By way of definition, personal data is any information that can be used to identify a specific (natural) person. The personal data that you are going to provide us will be incorporated into a file owned by our company for the purposes and in the terms set forth below.

This processing is subject to REGULATION (EU) 2016/679 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation), as well as ORGANIC LAW 3/2018, of December 5, on the Protection of Personal Data and guarantee of digital rights and its implementing regulations, in the event that said data refers to Spanish citizens.

Data Controller

The Data Controller responsible for processing your personal data is ACTIU BERBEGAL Y FORMAS, S.A. (ACTIU).

Address: Parque Tecnológico Actiu, Autovía CV-80, salida Onil-Castalla, 03420 Castalla (Alicante).

Company Tax Code: A03137874..

Telephone: +34 966 560 700

You can contact the Data Protection Officer for any questions related to the processing of your personal data at: lopd@actiu.com 

What types of personal data does ACTIU collect?

ACTIU collects the data that is strictly necessary to manage the relationships established with its clients, contacts, suppliers and collaborators. In any case, the data collected will be adequate and not excessive for the purpose for which it is processed, and it will be processed fairly and lawfully, and with due care.

The type of information that we could collect will depend on the type of relationship that ACTIU establishes with each user. In general, the most common categories are the following:

  • Contact information: name, alias and email address.
  • Information about the organisation and contacts, in the case of company members.
  • User content: content from communications with the system administrator, questions or suggestions.
  • Device and browser information, such as network and connection information (including Internet Service Provider [ISP] and Internet Protocol [IP] addresses), device and browser identifiers and information (including the device, application or browser type, version, plug-in type and its version, operating system, user agent, language and time zone settings and other technical information), cookie identifiers and information, and similar data.
  • Localisation data, such as the location of the user's device.
  • Demographic information, such as the country and preferred language.
  • For job applications, information about the candidate (identification and contact information, training and professional experience)

Purposes of personal data processing. Why do we need your personal data?

If we collect your personal data, we may need it for various reasons and depending on ACTIU's activities, including the following:

  1. Web forms

    The personal data that you provide through the forms enabled on the website or any other means of contact will be processed in order to respond to your questions and requests. When necessary, we will send your request internally to the corresponding department for it to be managed correctly.

    We will use your data to send you communications of interest if you have subscribed to our newsletter, communication of events, offers or any other type of service provided by ACTIU. 

  2. Clients

    The personal data that you provide when you maintain a relationship as an ACTIU client will be processed for the following purposes: client management, product sales, order processing, compliance with tax and accounting obligations, sending quality surveys and communications of interest. In this regard, this group of data subjects also includes the data that is provided of contact persons at companies that is necessary to maintain the relationship.

    Lawfulness: The legal basis for the processing of your data is the existence of a contractual relationship and ACTIU's legitimate interest in sending you communications of interest in relation to its sales prospecting activity to generate new business opportunities and customer loyalty, as well as to improve its services.

  3. Suppliers

    The personal data that you provide us with when you maintain collaborative relationships and/or as an ACTIU supplier will be processed for the general management of suppliers (registration of suppliers, management of contracts, orders and payments, etc.), for compliance with tax and accounting obligations, and to maintain a database of contacts for future contracts and/or collaborations.

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is the existence of a contractual relationship.

  4. Contests and events

    The personal data that you provide us with when you sign up for a contest or event will be processed to manage the event (registrations, participation, voting, giveaways, event logistics, publication of information and images and related activities), and to send information related to the event or communications about future events and activities of interest. Keep in mind that, if you register to participate in an event, ACTIU may share basic information about the participants (name, company and email address) with other participants in the same event for the purposes of communication, exchange of ideas and networking.

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is the consent that you give us when you register for the contest or event and ACTIU's legitimate interest in keeping you informed in regards thereto.

    In these cases, a specific Privacy Policy may be established depending on each event, which you will be informed of at the time of registration. 

  5. Questionnaires and surveys

    ACTIU may invite you to participate in questionnaires and surveys. These questionnaires and surveys will generally be designed in such a way that they can be answered without adding any personal data. If, despite this, you include any personal data in a questionnaire or survey, ACTIU may use it to improve its products and services.

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is the consent that you give us when you complete the survey or questionnaire and ACTIU's legitimate interest in improving its products and services.

  6. Visitors and access to our facilities

    To access the facilities of the ACTIU GROUP companies, we may request that you identify yourself in the visitor log. The purpose of the processing of your data is to control visitors and manage external personnel who access the buildings.

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is ACTIU's legitimate interest in controlling access to its facilities and their security.

  7. Video surveillance

    ACTIU has closed-circuit video surveillance cameras. The purpose of processing your image is the video surveillance and security of its facilities.

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is ACTIU's legitimate interest in protecting the security of our facilities.

  8. Job applications

    The data that you provide us when you apply for a job offer or when you send us a curriculum vitae (CV), will be processed for the following purposes:

    • Selection of candidates during the open processes.
    • Maintain a file with information of professional profiles for future vacancies.
    • Formalization of an employment contract

    Legal standing: The legal basis for the processing of your data is your own consent, which is granted by sending your resume and accepting the privacy conditions

    At ACTIU we will process your personal data with strict confidentiality, promising to keep it secret and guaranteeing the duty to protect it, adopting all the necessary measures to prevent its alteration, inappropriate loss, unauthorised processing or access, misuse, access, disclosure or destruction, in accordance with the legal obligations that apply to us as the controllers of your personal data. To protect this personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry best practices.

Data retention

The data will be kept, in the case of clients or suppliers and their employees, for the duration of the contractual relationship and, subsequently, during the legal terms established by law for the prescription of contractual obligations, as well as for issues related to accounting and tax legislation. In all other cases, the data will be kept based on the conditions established for its collection, for the amount of time that is required to achieve the purpose for which it has been processed or until you withdraw your consent, object to the use of the data or inform us of your wish to erase it from our database.

In the case of images captured by our video surveillance systems, said images will be kept for a maximum period of one month.

In the case of sound, video and other image recordings, they may be kept for educational, informational and/or promotional reasons (internally and externally) for a longer period of time, especially if they have been published on portals, networks or other media. In such case, the personal data will be restricted to that which is strictly necessary for the maintenance of said information.

Disclosure

We may disclose your personal information if we are required to do so by law or if you violate our terms of service. 

When your consent is required to communicate your personal data to third parties, in the data collection forms we will inform you of the purpose of the processing, of the data to be communicated as well as the identity or sectors of activity of the possible recipients of your personal data.

Data processing by third parties

We inform you that ACTIU's service providers may have access to your data when necessary for the management of the services provided or contractual relationships established with ACTIU, as well as for the maintenance of its systems (financial entities, data storage, computer support and systems maintenance, and legal, tax or accounting consulting services). Some of these companies could be located outside the European Union, so we will make sure that these providers comply with the guarantee requirements demanded by the applicable regulations on the protection of personal data. If you wish to request information about the providers with access to your data, you can contact us at lopd@actiu.com.

In the event that you contact us through one of our forms, either to request information of any kind or to purchase any of our products or services, in order to answer your questions or analyse your needs in a personalised way, we can answer you directly or through the members of our network of distributors or collaborators in your place of residence.

All the entities referred to in this section will use this data for the same purposes and subject to the same conditions specified in this Privacy Policy.

ACTIU undertakes to maintain the confidentiality of the personal data provided, as well as to apply the security measures provided for in Spanish and European regulations, and to require third parties to whom the data is communicated to adopt identical measures.

Location of the information

All personal data related to the organisation and management of events is stored in computer apps and on secure servers, as well as in specific electronic folders accessible only to authorised persons. ACTIU's systems and servers are password protected and require an authorised username and password to access them. The information is stored securely to safeguard the confidentiality and privacy of the data it contains. Paper documents are kept in secure cabinets or files.

Likewise, all persons who handle personal data within ACTIU sign a declaration of confidentiality.

User rights

Your rights as a user in relation to the personal data that you have provided us with (commonly known as ARCO-POL rights) are the following: 

  • Access: You can consult your personal data that is included in ACTIU files.
  • Rectification: You can modify your personal data when it is inaccurate or inadequate, or request that said information be completed when it is incomplete.
  • Erasure: You can request the erasure of your personal data in whole or in part.
  • Opposition: You can request that your personal data not be processed, although we can continue to process your data if we have legitimate reasons for the processing to prevail over your privacy interest.
  • Restriction of processing: You can request that the processing of your data be restricted when: (i) the dispute as to the accuracy of your data is being verified; (ii) the processing is lawful but you object to the erasure of your data; (iii) we do not need to process your data but you need it to exercise or defend claims; (iv) you have objected to the processing of your data while it is being verified if the legitimate reasons for the processing prevail over your reasons.
  • Data Portability: You will be able to receive a copy of the personal data that you have provided us with in electronic format, as well as to forward it to another entity without hindrance on our part.
  • Withdrawal of consent: You can withdraw your consent at any time without it affecting the lawfulness of the processing.

These rights differ depending on the local data protection laws in each country, state or territory. However, they may include more or fewer of the above rights.

If you believe that ACTIU is not processing your personal data in accordance with the requirements specified in this Privacy Policy or in the applicable data protection legislation, you can file a claim with the Spanish data protection authorities (Spanish Data Protection Agency).

Links to other websites

Our website or any of our social media postings may contain links to websites outside of our company. In these cases, ACTIU is not responsible for the privacy policies or the content of such sites. We recommend carefully reading the privacy conditions of such websites and social networks.

Changes to the Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time and without prior notice, especially due to possible changes in legislation, case law or the criteria used by the competent authority or the Spanish Data Protection Agency, therefore we recommend visiting this policy frequently. Changes and clarifications will take effect immediately after their publication on the website.  If we make material changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated.

Questions and contact information

For any questions or concerns, you can contact us through any of our available communication channels.

However, to exercise your ARCO-POL rights or to register a complaint, you can contact our DPO at lopd@actiu.com, or by postal mail to ACTIU BERBEGAL Y FORMAS, S.A., Parque Tecnologico Actiu, Autovia CV.80 - Salida Onil-Castalla P.O.BOX, 11, 03420 Castalla (Alicante).

Cookies Policy

You can visit our Cookies Policy here



JOB SELECTION PROCESSES 

Deletion period

The data will be kept for a maximum period of 2 years from its incorporation into our database or from its last update or modification carried out or requested by the candidate, being subsequently deleted or disabled on our servers to the extent that the security and data management system so allows it. We inform you that you can update or modify your resume in our database at any time by re-entering it or by notifying us in writing.

Data processing by third parties

We inform you that ACTIU's service providers may have access to your data when necessary for the management of the services provided or contractual relationships established with ACTIU, as well as for the maintenance of its systems (data storage, computer support and systems maintenance, legal, tax or accounting consulting services, travel agencies or travel companies). Some of these companies could be located outside the European Union, so we will make sure that these providers comply with the warranty requirements demanded by the applicable regulations on the protection of personal data. If you wish to request information about the providers with access to your data, you can contact us at lopd@actiu.com.

All the entities referred to in this section will use this data for the same purposes and subject to the same conditions specified in this Privacy Policy.

ACTIU undertakes to maintain the confidentiality of the personal data provided, as well as to apply the security measures provided for in Spanish and European regulations, and to require third parties to whom the data is communicated to adopt identical measures.

Acceptance of the Privacy Policy

The submission of your resume or your candidacy for any position published on our website implies that you have read, understood and accept ACTIU's Privacy Policy, giving your consent for Actiu to process and transfer your personal data according to the conditions indicated in this Policy. For this purpose, if you use our web portal, you must mark the acceptance option prior to sending your resume and/or application. In the event of submission or remittance by other means, this Privacy Policy will apply to you, hereby informing you that you can exercise your rights as described in the "User rights" section.

We inform you that your refusal to provide the required data or your non-consent to its use in accordance with this policy will prevent us from managing your request.

For Data Controller, Purposes of personal data processing, User Rights and Changes to the Privacy Policy, we refer to the general part of the ACTIU Privacy Policy.

Date of last update: February 2023