Cormac spent 12 hours trying to send one email. Evan has 17 apps open at all times. The real problem isn't the tools, it's that architects can't say no. And nobody taught them how.
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Archispeak is one of architecture's longest-running podcasts — 380+ episodes of honest, unfiltered conversation about what it's actually like to work in the profession. Since 2012, architects Evan Troxel and Cormac Phalen have been exploring design, career, firm culture, tools, work/life balance, mentoring, generational differences, and job hunting — everything that comes with building a life in architecture.
This isn't a highlight reel. It's the conversation architects actually have — about the hard parts of practice, the moments that define a career, and the things no one tells you in architecture school.
Built for architecture students, emerging architects, and seasoned professionals who want honest perspective on the profession.
Topics include architecture career and job searching, design process and critique, firm culture, work/life balance in architecture, architecture tools and software, mentoring and professional development, generational differences in architecture firms, and candid interviews with architects and industry leaders.
380+ episodes. Since 2012.
#384 - The AI and Expertise Paradox, with Chris Parsons
Architecture firms are adopting AI faster than they are building the expertise to judge it. In this episode, Evan Troxel and Cormac Phalen talk with Christopher Parsons, Founder and CEO of Knowledge Architecture, about why AI-driven QA and code-checking still require senior oversight, and what happens as that expertise retires. They unpack the structural knowledge gap in AEC, the erosion of apprenticeship and mentorship, and why architecture’s long feedback loop makes organizational learning so difficult. You’ll leave with a clearer picture of what it takes to rebuild judgment and develop expertise in a rapidly evolving, tool-heavy profession.
Read More#383 - Why We Still Love This Profession
In this episode, we explore how design technologists are stepping into leadership and shaping practice. Evan shares insights from the AECtech conference in NYC, covering continuing education challenges and community-building. We reflect on experiential design through projects like Heatherwick's Little Island, and consider how rediscovering joy in our work reconnects us with our passion for architecture.
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