ROB|ARCH 2026: Special session announced - Workshops and registration open!

ROB|ARCH 2026 (August 24-28 in Aarhus, Denmark) is fast approaching.

The organizers invite you to contribute through the Call for this year's Special Session and to explore its intensive 3-day workshop program. The Early Bird registration is now open!

"As part of the ROB|ARCH 2026 conference, we invite the community to contribute to the Special Session, a dedicated platform for work‑in‑progress research, artistic or experimental work, student projects, and design explorations that would benefit from peer discussion but are not intended for inclusion in the conference proceedings."

"Continuing the ROB|ARCH tradition, the Special Session celebrates emerging ideas, speculative directions, and innovative prototypes that advance discourse within robotic fabrication for architecture, design and fabrication, in relation to the conference theme Detangling Dependencies."

Complete details...

The IAAC Global Summer School 2025 workshops and IAAC Nodes network are back (July 7-25, 2025)

The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) in Barcelona announces a new edition of the Global Summer School 2025 (GSS25), marking another milestone fostering global collaboration and innovation in architecture and design.

This July, GSS25 presents an immersive lineup of four workshops exploring advanced architecture and digital fabrication, advanced computation, urban data analytics, and artificial intelligence. These workshops are led by IAAC Faculty and Alumni and promise innovative workflows and individual project exploration and development.

GSS25 proposes a unique blend of onsite and online workshops, offering both hands-on experiences at IAAC in Barcelona and digital accessibility through an agile online format. GSS25 students can tailor their learning journey, opting for a two-week onsite workshop in Barcelona or selecting one or more online modules offered throughout July 2025.

Over the years, IAAC has promoted meaningful knowledge and expertise sharing among architects, engineers, designers, and innovators worldwide. The GSS brings together students from diverse backgrounds to engage with IAAC's network of experts and renowned lecturers.

After four years, IAAC is glad to open its Global Nodes Network, strategic cities worldwide, boosting innovation through onsite GSS workshops led by IAAC alumni in diverse geographic locations. Applicants can therefore choose to join GSS in their preferred node - city - county!

All GSS25 courses include exclusive access to Global Lectures, weekly online gatherings featuring experts from the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry, as well as connecting participants of IAAC nodes located worldwide. These sessions are designed to complement the workshop themes and provide participants with valuable insights and perspectives.

The application deadline with the early bird fees deadline is May 31. 

Please read about prices, eligibility criteria, and applications.

AA DLAB 2025

Taking place from July 21 to August 8, 2025, the AA DLAB returns for its 20th year, offering a cutting-edge three-week program. Hosted at the Architectural Association’s London HQ, DLAB explores the integration of advanced computational design, analysis, and large-scale prototyping techniques. The program brings world-class tutors and lecturers from institutions and firms such as Zaha Hadid Architects, Grimshaw Global, Foster + Partners, and TU Delft.

This year, DLAB will investigate sustainability, material reuse, and robotic 3D printing, aiming to transform found materials into cohesive architectural structures. The program highlights waste reduction and innovative fabrication techniques by integrating discarded or locally sourced materials, demonstrating how advanced technologies can support sustainable architectural practices.

Applications and more information...

IAAC launches the Global Summer School 2024 - Applications now open!

The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) in Barcelona just introduced a new edition of the Global Summer School (GSS), marking another milestone in fostering global collaboration and innovation in architecture and design.

For over 14 years, IAAC has been facilitating knowledge exchange and expertise sharing among architects, engineers, designers, and innovators worldwide. The GSS brings together students from diverse backgrounds to engage with IAAC's network of experts and renowned lecturers.

This July, IAAC introduces a new edition of GSS, offering a unique blend of onsite and online workshops. The modular workshop model aims to provide participants with hands-on experiences at IAAC Barcelona while ensuring digital accessibility through an agile online format.

GSS24 presents an exciting lineup of four workshops covering various topics, including the exploration of bamboo architecture and fabrication, advanced computation, urban analytics for participatory design, and artificial intelligence. These workshops, led by IAAC Faculty and Alumni, promise immersive workflows and individual project exploration and development.

Participants in the GSS program will have the flexibility to tailor their learning journey according to their preferences. Whether opting for a two-week onsite workshop in Barcelona at IAAC or selecting one or more online modules offered throughout July 2024, students can expect a dynamic and enriching educational experience.

One of the highlights of GSS24 is the exclusive access to Global Lectures and weekly online gatherings featuring experts from the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. These sessions complement the workshop themes and provide participants with valuable insights and perspectives.

Agenda & Abstracts

Bamboo at Work Onsite Workshop

The workshop will explore the convergence of parametric tools, digital fabrication, and prototyping within the environment of IAAC Barcelona and Valldaura Labs. It welcomes creatives from architecture, urban planning, digital fabrication, and design seeking a multidisciplinary experience in an international setting.

Dates: 1-12 July 2024
Venue: IAAC Barcelona (Spain)

Advanced Computation for Design Workshop

During the workshop, participants will explore the convergence of advanced computational design, machine learning, and environmental analysis in architecture powered by Python. Students will unlock the potential of data-centric models and Python-based algorithms to revolutionize architectural practice, prioritizing sustainability and environmental considerations.

Dates: 1-5 July 2024
Venue: Online

Urban Analytics for Participatory Design Workshop

The workshop will explore the integration of public participation with digital innovation in urban design, develop urban analytics for participatory design, collect and map citizen inputs for data-driven design of public spaces, and equip students with the skills to engage communities and apply technology in co-designing inclusive urban spaces.

Dates: 8-12 July 2024
Venue: Online

AI for Regenerative Design Workshop

In the workshop, students will use cutting-edge AI tools including infrared.city for real-time microclimate simulations, multi-modal large language models, stable diffusion models, and advanced computer vision models to develop innovative design workflows for sustainable architectural solutions.

Dates: 15-19 July
Venue: Online

The deadline for applications with the early bird fees is May 31st. 

Please read about prices, eligibility criteria, and applications.

AA DLAB 2024

In its 19th year, DLAB is a two-week program taking place at the AA London HQ’s unique atmosphere.

DLAB experiments with the integration of advanced computational design, analysis, and large-scale prototyping techniques. The program builds on its expertise in complex architectural design and fabrication processes, relying heavily on materiality and performance. DLAB brings together a range of experts—tutors and lecturers—from internationally acclaimed academic institutions and practices, Architectural Association, and Zaha Hadid Architects, amongst others.

The research generated at DLAB has been published in international media—ArchDaily, Archinect, Bustler—and peer-reviewed conference papers, including SimAUD (Simulation in Architecture and Urban Design), eCAADe (Education and Research in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe). 

DLAB investigates the correlations between form, material, and structure through the rigorous implementation of computational methods for design, analysis, and fabrication, coupled with analog modes of physical experimentation and prototype making. Each program cycle devises custom-made architectural processes by creating novel associations between conventional and contemporary design and fabrication techniques. The research culminates in the design and fabrication of a one-to-one scale prototype realized by using robotic fabrication techniques, intending to integrate form-finding, material computation, and structural performance.

Applications and more information...

Robotic Fabrication with COMPAS FAB

25. 26. May 2023

Robotic Fabrication with COMPAS FAB, PAZ Central - ETH, Zurich

24. May 2023 - Pre - Compas, PAZ Central - Zurich

Digital Fabrication in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industry requires the seamless integration of diverse tools and software across various domains. COMPAS, a comprehensive open-source computational framework in Python, simplifies the integration of cutting-edge tools and streamlines multi-disciplinary workflows, making it easier for architects, designers, and researchers to adopt them within parametric design settings.

In this 2-day workshop, Gonzalo Casas of Gramazio Kohler Research - ETH will introduce participants to the COMPAS framework, showcasing its core functionality, extension packages, and compatibility with Rhino 3D. Participants will then collaboratively explore a hands-on example focused on robotic fabrication of a discrete assembly guided step-by-step.

More Info + Registration...

KUKA|prc in Unity Visual Scripting – Association for Robots in Architecture

Robots in Architecture has been kind enough to share its new project that links KUKA|prc with Unity and Rhino.Compute:

"While Grasshopper is extremely strong at defining geometrically complex operations, it is less optimized for processes that incorporate live sensor feedback or branching data paths, due to its fundamentally acyclic, directed graph.

In our research at Creative Robotics we have integrated KUKA|prc into the game engine Unity and its included Unity Visual Scripting system, that features an accessible integration of state machines.

As Unity cannot cover the same scope of geometrical operations as Rhino, we still utilize Rhino and Grasshopper via Rhino.Compute for pathplanning, while depending on UVS’ state machine for controlling the process flow."

Complete details...