In the October 024, UMAI Lab joined a special event co-hosted by the İzmir Chamber of Architects and İzmir Chamber of Commerce under the theme “Odada Yaz Vakti: AI-Supported Design Competitions.” The event brought together architects, students, researchers, and technologists to reflect on the evolving relationship between artificial intelligence and architectural creativity.

ArchiJury: AI Joins the Jury Room

One of the highlights of the day was a presentation of the ArchiJury project by UMAI Lab researchers Selen Çiçek and Sadık Aksu. In this session, the team introduced two evolving prototypes of the AI-assisted architectural critique model, nicknamed “ArchiJury.”

• The first version of the model focused on binary attribute labeling, offering a structured yet constrained interpretation framework.

• The second version, in contrast, delivered a layered critique system, capable of articulating more nuanced and contextualized architectural evaluations.

This presentation explored how generative AI models trained on architectural language can act as critical agents, contributing to the design evaluation process in speculative, assistive, and complementary ways. The audience engaged with the question: Can a machine mimic—or perhaps augment—the reflective thinking of a human juror?

Workshop: Neural Networks and Diffusion Coding

Alongside the presentations and jury panels, UMAI Lab member Kaan Bingöl led a hands-on AI workshop titled “Neural Networks and Diffusion Coding.” Focused on text-to-image generation and recoloring techniques, the session provided architecture students and professionals with a tangible introduction to AI-driven creativity.

Participants experimented with visual prompts, learned how diffusion models work, and explored how design thinking can be reframed through neural transformations. The workshop’s outputs—playful, speculative, and bold—were exhibited during the colloquium and widely discussed among attendees.

Jury Participation

Beyond showcasing our research, UMAI Lab researchers, Gizem Mersin, Selen Çiçek, Kaan Bingöl, Lale Başarır, also took part in the jury panel for the “Agenda” category of the idea competition. Evaluating student submissions through both human and computational lenses, the panel discussed the potential for AI to not just generate, but also meaningfully interpret design intent.