AI can design cities, but can it understand what matters to people? 10 Ways to Keep People in Control

Generative AI (GenAI) is a type of artificial intelligence that creates new content – such as text, images or ideas – by learning patterns from existing data. GenAI, particularly through large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek, is quickly becoming part of everyday urban design research and practice.

The models can summarize specialist literature in seconds, generate political scenarios and help design complex narratives.

For urban planners and researchers working under pressure, this feels like a breakthrough. But behind this efficiency lies a deeper question: Are we expanding knowledge about urban planning or are we quietly reshaping it in ways we don’t fully understand?

Urban design is an academic and professional field concerned with the design of the physical form and experience of cities. It is concerned with the relationships between buildings, spaces, people and activities within larger urban systems.

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