As I mentioned last week, Arcol is launching in ~100 days. Leading up to this I'm going to share some of the guiding beliefs we have about our launch. Starting today, with who this launch is for.
Continuing a concerning trend
I’ve talked a lot about how designers have been put in the corner — often undervalued in our industry, treated as an afterthought. The trend I see is that AI tools are amplifying this issue.
I have to be incredibly clear here — we aren't denying the inevitably of AI (quite the opposite - we’re building our own AI features). But how AI is used dictates the core of the product and the trend we see too often we see AI as a shortcut.
Building design is one of the oldest crafts there is and there is a collective wisdom held in the minds of designers and AEC professionals. The AI I've see doesn't support the collective wisom and creativity of this group though — it tries to replace it by churning out countless mediocre layouts in record time, sidelining the designer’s craft, care, and expertise.
In short I believe in AI, but I want it to do my laundry, not my art.
Our big bet is on the designers and innovators
When Arcol launches, we’ll introduce tools focused on enabling designers and innovators, not overshadowing them. Our sketching, modeling, and, yes, AI features are built with one goal: to keep the craft of building design central.
Why do we believe this will work? The only real changes we’ve seen in our industry have all come from the grassroots innovators. Very few tools have broken through since the launch of Revit; SketchUp, Rhino and Miro primarily — tools adopted by designers solving real problems in their day-to-day work.
The core bets of our Product
- Build for the way the industry ought to be, not the way it is (this is why we love our boards feature)
- AI to empower designers and innovators, not replace them
- Accessible, beautiful and easy design tools for everyone — including giving away as much as we can for free.
What’s Next?
The future belongs to the crazy ones
The future belongs to designers & innovators. Our job at Arcol is simple: give you the best possible tools to shape it. Follow along with us — we can’t wait to show you what we’ve got in less than 100 days.
-Paul
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In a world of fluid virtual values, architecture endures. The images that you, your work, your city and your country create by building more, that likely will outlive you. Buildings are the most traces we leave behind as people — old ones were here long before we arrived and new ones will be here long after we’re gone. Architecture is a collective selfie, a status that can’t be updated.
- Rasmus Wærn