Design-Tech Talk 8.0

Hamid Hassanzadeh is a distinguished architect, entrepreneur, researcher, and speaker. Having earned his degree in architectural engineering in 2012, Hamid has since contributed to various architectural projects across multiple regions around the globe. In early 2016, he founded the ParametricArchitecture platform, initially launching on Instagram. Today, ParametricArchitecture, often abbreviated as PA, stands as a globally renowned hub for parametric, computational design, and AI lovers, boasting over 20 million monthly interactions on the internet. Hamid endeavors to demystify the intricacies of the parametric, computational, and AI realms through compelling articles, interviews, workshops, podcasts, and conferences disseminated across various digital platforms. Furthermore, he’s the visionary behind PAACADEMY, an educational entity under the aegis of PA, dedicated to propagating the concepts of computational architecture and design. The PAACADEMY, as an educational platform, educates and engages with its audience, introducing them to advanced techniques and algorithms employed by architects, designers, and coders alike. He highlights exemplary projects executed using state-of-the-art design software, ensuring that his audience not only witnesses but also comprehends the depth and philosophy of these avant-garde design practices. Moreover, as the esteemed host of the 'PA Talks' interview series, he engages in enriching conversations with architects, orchestrates numerous workshops, conferences, and events, and has had the privilege of interviewing myriad globally acclaimed architects, delving into their methodologies and foresighted visions for the architectural landscape.

With considerable experience in International projects and in the UK, Edoardo is Design Director at AKTII and specialises in complex design, leading the applied research team. His portfolio includes The Vessel, a complex, high-profile collaboration with Heatherwick Studio in New York, the Heydar Aliyev Museum in Baku, with Zaha Hadid Architects, and the Bloomberg Headquarters with F+P. Ed has been involved in several collaborations with KTH University in Stockholm, the AA and the RCA in London, and the Harvard GSD, where he is currently running various lectures and workshops. He published various papers and books on digital fabrication, sustainable design, new technologies, and material research.

Ana Gabriela Loayza is an architect and designer currently working as an Architectural Designer & AI Lead at Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) in New York. She holds an M.Arch II degree from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD), where her research explored AI-driven design workflows and urban growth boundaries in projects such as Center–Periphery: Encoding New Processes in Shenzhen’s Boundaries. At BIG, she specialises in integrating computational design and artificial intelligence within architectural practice, leveraging her expertise at the intersection of emerging technologies and built-environment innovation.

Daniel Koehler, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin and a member of the Board of Directors of ACADIA. He leads the Lab for Environmental Design Strategies (lab‑eds) with research sites in Austin, Shenzhen, and Innsbruck, focusing on Generative AI, environmental performance, and architectural typology. Formerly a researcher at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, and the University of Innsbruck, he completed his doctorate on part‑to‑whole methodologies, later published as The Mereological City (transcript / Columbia UP, 2016), now a standard reference on mereology in modernism. Koehler’s work has been exhibited internationally at the Centre Pompidou, the Venice Architecture Biennale, and in Prague, Milan, Montreal, London, and Austin. He consults for computational‑design startups such as Sengine AI. His recent book Compositional Intelligence (Routledge) positions Generative AI as an intellectual partner for rethinking architectural typology across scales.