AI: Friend of Foe? How about Neither
A couple of weeks ago, I took part in a round table at Clerkenwell Design Week, and somewhat inevitably, the topic of AI came up. The collective groan from the room said it all - for many designers, AI feels like old news already. Broadly, I find that people in our sector fall into two camps: those who see AI as a helpful tool that enhances their work, and those who fear it’s here to replace them. But for me, it’s neither - it’s a call to action.
AI Can’t ‘Walk the Space’
At Sibley Grove, many of our projects involve period properties - listed buildings with rich character, layers of history and plenty of quirks. Could AI one day design a hotel from scratch? Probably. If the industry feeds it the right data, it will get there soon enough. But could it design a sensitive, nuanced intervention within a centuries-old building. I have my doubts.
Historic buildings were never designed to support the systems we now consider essential, for example, air conditioning, ventilation or electrics. Integrating these into old structures, while retaining ceiling heights and architectural integrity, requires a hands-on, deeply human approach. The best solutions come not from a spreadsheet, but from being there, walking the space, getting under the skin of the building.
You can’t digitise the intangible
By its nature, AI works off data, but in heritage buildings, the data constantly changes. Survey drawings evolve, surprises are common, and the real opportunities often reveal themselves only when the plaster comes off. You never truly know a historic building until the enabling works begin. And then there’s the intangible features of a building - the things that can’t be digitised. Like the moment you walk down a corridor you’ve passed a dozen times, and for the first time, the sun is streaming through the window, and the cherry blossom is in full bloom outside. Suddenly, that window isn’t just a detail, it’s a design opportunity.
On one of our current projects, I was leaving site on a dark midwinter evening. As I turned back to look at the façade, the building was glowing from within. Each window offered a glimpse into a different part of the public space - tiny vignettes of what guests would experience. That view directly informed our design for the arrival sequence. Each opening became a kind of shop window. That insight came not from a drawing or a render, but from being present.
Clients want to be a part of the design journey
Clients, especially those investing in historic buildings, don’t want to click their fingers and get an instant design. They want their DNA in the project, and however commercially minded they are, these projects are still a labour of love. Yes, there are commercial pressures, and yes, we all want to be efficient, but the process - the journey if you like - is part of the value. It's part of the story clients want to tell.
The arrival of ‘creative AI’ will be deeply impactful - far more so, in my view, than the arrival of CAD, which famously killed off the drawing board (for the record, we still use ours). Designers must evolve. We must find relevance beyond surface aesthetics. The interior design industry has, in recent years, become dangerously focused on visual trends, on Instagram-able moments and short-term styles. But good design goes far deeper.
AI will never be ‘uniquely human’
I’m hearing from peers about a drop-off in technical understanding; how things go together, how spaces truly function. Plenty of people can design a hotel room that looks nice, but the valuable skill is in understanding how that space feels and operates on a human level. In my opinion, the advance of AI encourages designers to excel in the things that are uniquely human; to reconnect with traditional skills and crafts, to live a breath the building we work in. Something that AI will never fully achieve.