By Tim Dufault FAIA, Concert CRO

Architecture in 2025: Navigating Uncertainty with Optimism

Last week’s AIA Conference in Boston was more than a gathering—it reflected where architecture stands in 2025. Fittingly, it took place in a city that exemplifies transformation. Since the AIA last convened there 17 years ago, Boston’s Seaport District has evolved from industrial and parking lots into a vibrant urban center filled with mixed-use developments, green spaces, and public courtyards. It’s a tangible reminder of architecture’s power to reshape the built environment and how navigating uncertainty with optimism is embedded in our profession.

Over 12,000 architects, designers, and industry partners convened to explore innovations in design and construction. The conference offered a platform to exchange ideas, celebrate exceptional contributions—including a new class elevated to the College of Fellows—and confront the forces shaping the profession today.

While distilling four days of seminars, exhibitions, and conversations into a few themes oversimplifies the event’s richness, three core ideas stood out: economic uncertainty, the rise of AI and innovation, and persistent optimism for the future.

1. Economic Uncertainty: A Profession on Edge

The AIA/Deltek Architecture Billings Index (ABI) has remained below its benchmark of 50 for 28 of the last 31 months. As a diffusion index based on billings from over 400 firms, this signals that many practices have seen multiple months of revenue decline, often exceeding 5%, since late 2022. Because architectural work precedes construction activity by 9 to 12 months, this trend is a leading indicator of economic conditions across the broader building industry. So important is this data that it’s now a regular feature in Federal Reserve and institutional forecasts.

Conversations at the conference confirmed the anxiety. Many firms are pausing hiring, and layoffs have begun in some regions. Yet the outlook isn’t universally bleak. Some practices continue to thrive, buffered by active markets or strong client pipelines. The more profound concern, however, is structural: commoditization. As basic services become standardized, architects must rethink how they define and communicate value. Increasingly, the focus is shifting from deliverables like drawings and specifications to the broader impact of their work—solving business problems, enabling transformation, and creating long-term value.

At CONCERT, we’re already delivering this shift. Our platform elevates architects from deliverable producers to strategic contributors by capturing, securing, and contextualizing their work. CONCERT embeds trust and traceability directly into the deliverables, making the architect’s contribution undeniable and irreplaceable.

2. AI and Innovation: Rethinking What We Deliver

In the opening keynote, AI strategist Allie Miller challenged the profession to reconsider how it defines worth. She argued that time is a cost, not value, and that architects must decouple their worth from the hours they bill. Real value lies in the outcomes created—how a building enhances business operations, transforms user experiences, or drives sustainability.

AI isn’t just about automation. It’s about augmentation—providing tools that let architects do more of what matters. From generative design to data-driven decision-making, innovation prompts firms to reimagine their workflows and client relationships.

CONCERT is at the forefront of this transformation. Our AI-powered tools extract contractual deliverables and automate project workflows, liberating architects from administrative drag and letting them focus on creativity and client value. This isn’t theory—it’s a working reality across hundreds of projects on our platform.

3. Optimism for the Future: The Architect’s Mindset

Architects are, by nature, optimists. They see opportunity where others see obstacles.

This mindset was reflected in a keynote conversation with former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who spoke about the vital role of design in creating livable, equitable cities. As a former mayor and cabinet member, he shared firsthand how collaboration with architects has led to better infrastructure and public space outcomes. His message was clear: design matters, and architects will be central to solving the complex challenges of the future.

Our industry is rooted in the belief that we can make a difference through design, problem-solving, and creating places where people can live, work, and thrive. That spirit remains unshaken.

At CONCERT, we match that optimism with infrastructure. Our tools don’t just support the future; we’re making it operational. We help architects move forward with confidence that their deliverables are clear, their obligations are met, and their value is preserved across every phase of the project.

Architects face uncertainty. CONCERT delivers clarity. We don’t just want to respond to industry themes—we want to shape them.

CONCERT: Navigating Uncertainty with Optimism

At CONCERT, clarity and communication are essential in turning uncertainty into opportunity. Our approach helps architects navigate uncertainty with optimism by adding certainty to their deliverables. The themes that emerged at AIA25 reflect what we’ve built our platform to address: enabling better outcomes through digital certainty.

Our newest release, CONCERT Compose, redefines how deliverables are created, shared, and approved across the AEC ecosystem. It’s not just about tracking documents—it’s about capturing intent, process, and context to drive better collaboration and lasting value.

We don’t measure efficiency by hours saved—we measure it by outcomes improved. We’re building tools that support the architect’s optimism with the confidence of certainty.

In 2025, the future of architecture remains uncertain, but also full of promise. At CONCERT, we’re all in on building that future.