New Autodesk & Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building exhibit showcases the future of human/machine collaboration
June 18 03:20:12, 2025
The Smithsonian's Arts + Industries Building (AIB), America’s very first National Museum, has been closed for nearly two decades. Recently, however, it’s set to reopen temporarily to celebrate the Smithsonian’s 175th anniversary. A few years back, Autodesk got wind of this exciting news and jumped at the chance to collaborate.
Fast forward to today, and the museum is finally reopening! Until July of next year, the AIB will be transformed into a national space dedicated to exploring ideas and questions about the future. As a company deeply invested in empowering people to design and create a better world, we were thrilled to partner on this project.
One of the highlights of this exhibition is FUTURES, a building-wide showcase blending awe-inspiring art, cutting-edge technology, innovative design, and historical context. The Smithsonian aims to inspire visitors to dream big and envision multiple possible futures on the horizon.
As part of FUTURES, we collaborated with the Smithsonian AIB to create the Co-Lab. This unique space features a sustainably designed timber structure, generated through advanced generative design techniques. The Co-Lab also showcases inspiring stories highlighting the power of human-AI collaboration and includes an interactive multiplayer generative design experience called “Future Communities.â€
After years of brainstorming, designing, and working alongside an exceptional team of researchers, architects, and curators, I couldn’t be more excited for the public to experience what we’ve created.
In the spirit of the AIB’s tradition of innovation and experimentation, we’re inviting visitors to join in and help shape the future of technology and design collaboration. Future Communities invites participants to work together, both with each other and AI, to build a sustainable community block using Autodesk’s generative design technology. Each player takes on a role—developer, ecologist, or mayor—with specific goals and considerations related to social, ecological, and economic factors.
For instance, the ecologist focuses on creating green spaces and cleaner air, while the developer designs spaces for living and working. Meanwhile, the mayor ensures fair distribution of services and opportunities. Players must carefully consider their actions since resources are limited and shared among the group.
The evolving community block is displayed in real-time, with metrics on the screen showing performance across four key areas: daylight, access to services, carbon footprint, and urban density. These metrics empower players to make informed decisions, balancing competing needs and fostering collaboration.
This experience encourages dialogue among visitors, engaging them in teamwork and challenging them to leverage AI insights to craft a thriving future for everyone involved. What excites me most is the potential for AI and these collaborative tools to bring diverse perspectives together, reducing individual biases and leading to solutions that benefit all stakeholders.
I had the privilege of working closely with Brad MacDonald, Director of Creative Media at Smithsonian AIB, on Future Communities. During our collaboration, we both marveled at the incredible potential of human-AI partnerships in solving complex challenges.
Brad recently remarked, "There’s never been an interactive exhibit quite like this. For the first time, guests of all ages and backgrounds will collaborate with each other and AI to design a sustainable city block. The development of technology starts with people—diverse voices and values are crucial for creating an equitable and sustainable future. How we build and train AI significantly impacts its recommendations and outcomes. We can't wait to see what people come up with!"
I look forward to learning more about how these new collaborative design tools and processes can promote equity and sustainability in creating better future outcomes. I hope you get the chance to try your hand at being a developer, ecologist, or mayor and design the kind of neighborhood you'd like to see in the future!
For more information on FUTURES, check out the link provided. The exhibit launched on November 20 and will remain free and open to the public until July 2022.
A special thank you goes to Hyundai Motor Group, Kartell, NVIDIA, Starck, and Z by HP for supporting the Co-Lab exhibit.
To learn more about our collaboration with the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building, visit the link provided.
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