ACE Good Practice Series — Volumes 01 & 02

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant prospect for the architectural profession — it is already reshaping how architects design, communicate, and take on professional responsibility. From design and creativity to participation, sustainability, and professional responsibility, AI is opening up new possibilities — and raising important questions for architects across Europe.

In this series, ACE shares research, publications, and good practices from across its network. This article covers two parts of that series: ACE’s own AI programme, and a roundup of how ACE Member Organisations are helping architects understand, use, and shape AI responsibly.

ACE’s Own AI Programme

ACE’s own contribution to this conversation is A.I.: Architects for Innovative Research, developed with support from the European Union’s Creative Europe programme. The study explores how AI and digital technologies could shape architectural design, education, and urban planning, bringing together innovative research from across Europe, including:

• How digital tools influence visual thinking and creativity
• How AI can involve young people in shaping their cities
• How computational tools can support sustainable urban planning

The programme began with ACE’s Architects for Innovation conference, which brought together experts to discuss AI’s creative potential — as well as its ethical, legal, and professional implications.

Good Practices from Member Organisations

Following this introduction to ACE’s own AI programme, we turn to how ACE Member Organisations across Europe are helping architects understand, use, and shape artificial intelligence responsibly.

Rather than waiting for a single European standard to emerge, national and regional professional organisations have taken the initiative themselves: publishing research, drafting practical guidance, and setting out ethical frameworks tailored to their own regulatory context and the everyday realities of practice. Together, these five initiatives offer a representative picture of how the profession is responding — from ethics and regulation to research and vision.

France — CNOA: Opportunities Meet Professional Ethics

The Conseil National de l’Ordre des Architectes (CNOA) has published a report connecting the opportunities offered by AI with architects’ professional and ethical responsibilities. Titled L’IA et les architectes : concilier opportunités et déontologie, the report sets out practical recommendations on transparency, responsibility, confidentiality, intellectual property, and the architect’s duty to advise their clients — grounding the conversation about AI firmly in the profession’s existing code of ethics.

United Kingdom — RIBA: Measuring AI Adoption

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has taken an evidence-based approach with its annual RIBA AI Report, tracking how architectural practices are actually adopting AI tools, what impact this is having on design and business processes, and what skills architects will need to remain competitive as the technology matures. By repeating the research annually, RIBA is building a longitudinal view of the profession’s transformation rather than a single snapshot.

Germany — BAK: Building Practical AI Literacy

The Bundesarchitektenkammer (BAK) has opted for a living resource rather than a static publication. Its guide, 10+ Questions and Answers on AI, is regularly updated to address AI applications, workflows, opportunities, risks, copyright, and professional responsibility — a format designed to keep pace with a fast-moving technology and to answer the practical questions architects are actually asking.

Austria — Arch+Ing: Turning Regulation into Practice

With the EU AI Act now shaping the regulatory landscape, the Austrian chamber Arch+Ing has published the AI Guide for Civil Engineers, offering guidance on AI literacy, risk assessment, internal AI registers, and responsible-use policies for professional offices. The guide translates a complex piece of EU legislation into concrete steps that practices of any size can put into place.

Norway — Arkitektbedriftene: Defining a Human-Centred Vision

Where other Member Organisations have focused on guidance and compliance, the Norwegian association Arkitektbedriftene has chosen to articulate a vision. Its manifesto, Reclaiming Architecture: A Manifesto in the Age of AI, calls for AI in architecture to remain human-centred, transparent, and environmentally responsible — promoting human judgement, data sovereignty, and critical AI literacy as non-negotiable foundations for the profession.

Different Approaches, Shared Principles

Read side by side, these five initiatives take noticeably different forms — a deontological report, an annual survey, a living Q&A, a regulatory guide, a manifesto. Yet they converge on the same underlying principles:

• Human creativity remains central to the architectural act
• Professional responsibility cannot be delegated to a tool
• Transparency with clients and the public is essential
• Architectural quality must not be compromised in the pursuit of efficiency
• Responsible innovation should guide how the profession adopts new technology

This convergence, arrived at independently by organisations working in different regulatory and cultural contexts, suggests a shared professional instinct about what matters most as AI becomes part of everyday practice.

Have Your Say: EU Call for Evidence

The European Commission’s call for evidence on AI in the Cultural and Creative Sectors is open until 11 September 2026. This is a direct opportunity for architects and Member Organisations to help shape how AI is regulated across the cultural and creative industries, architecture included.

Sources

• ACE — A.I.: Architects for Innovative Research
• CNOA (France) — L’IA et les architectes : concilier opportunités et déontologie
• RIBA (United Kingdom) — RIBA AI Report
• BAK (Germany) — 10+ Questions and Answers on AI
• Arch+Ing (Austria) — AI Guide for Civil Engineers
• Arkitektbedriftene (Norway) — Reclaiming Architecture: A Manifesto in the Age of AI
• European Commission — Call for evidence: AI Strategy for the Cultural and Creative Sectors