The End of Architectural Visualization Jobs?
Are we currently seeing the end of architectural visualization jobs?
With countless AI rendering programs releasing every month, it begs the question… How much longer will human architectural & 3D visualization artists be needed?
This image was created with VISOID based on a simple 3D model input with minimal materiality.
I remember attending an AI Visualizer Summit event here in Sydney with some of the industry leaders in architectural rendering, and hearing the speakers self convincingly say things such as “AI is not going to overtake us, it’s neat but we are still many many years away from being replaced by AI.”
But from what I’ve seen already in the start of 2025, I honestly think a lot of artists within the visualization field will become redundant very soon. It’s a harsh thing to hear but it’s reality, and I’m going to explain why.
Firstly, let’s take a look at the best current architectural AI visualization tools in 2025.
VISOID
“A user-friendly visualization tool that requires no prior experience to operate, delivering stunning results without texture and model libraries or plugins.”
After testing all of the available AI rendering tools currently available, VISOID came out on top specifically for rendering close-up shots and visualizing the correct materiality of your input model. However it does underperform when rendering long-shots of large scale projects - it excels in detailed facades and interiors.
VISOID includes a free plan to get started straight-away with 30 credits to use with the sketch/3D model to render tool.
Rendair
“Rendair is an all-in-one architectural rendering platform for quick, high-quality visualizations. Simplified project renders with accuracy and efficiency”
Rendair offers a more comprehensive approach with specifically architecture tailored AI tools including but not limited to;
Text to render
Elevation to render
3D base to render
Sketch to render
Image to render
Upscale
Edit images
Make image variations
Create AI Video
Rendair utilises a high quality API to generate usable visualization results and offers a comprehensive program for most architectural visualization needs. However it does not offer a free credit trial.
Midjourney
“An independent research lab exploring new mediums of thought and expanding the imaginative powers of the human species.”
Midjourney (MJ) is by far the best AI program for creating prompt-based images from text-to-image. I have made countless videos on MJ proving it’s ability to create unprecedented imagery in terms of architecture and 3D visualization. MJ has also begun utilizing original image input editors as well. We eagerly await the release of the new Midjourney V7 which promises to be a huge leap forward for archiviz. MJ is the current most popular prompt based rendering tool as it is known to retain and refine architectural detail while keeping a coherent and cinematic image.
Countless AI tools available
There is a huge number of AI tools available for all visualization needs including but not limit to;
ChatGPT image generator
OpenAI Sora
GrokAI
Stable Diffusion
DALL-E
Just to name a few.
“AI won’t replace us, we still have another 5-10 years”
AI remained rather stagnant in the year of 2024 with little advancement beyond somewhat useful text-to-image and sketch-to-render AI platforms. The results had a few issues in terms of staying within the boundaries of the base image and creating random artefacts on the output image. The images produced would also fall apart upon zooming in to any refined detail.
The current programs i.e. VISOID, Rendair, Midjourney have already had substantial improvements within the first quarter of 2025, this will undoubtedly continue increasing as the year progresses with mention Midjourney V7 releasing at any point now. Industry leaders within the visualization field were saying
“it won’t replace us, we still have atleast another 5-10 years before we should even worry about that.”
This statement is absolute cope, unfortunately. The current rate of AI advancement is exponential, it would be unsurprising if AI visualization has surpassed human ability by 2026. Those saying that it won’t replace them are simply stating that out of comfort and fear of having to change their career field - while not every single person will be replaced, a working team could be substantially reduced for time and cost efficiency. It is extremely harsh to hear but unfortunately it is our reality.
No choice but to adapt.
Though the swift evolution of AI does pose many ethical and legal questions regarding authenticity - our very way of designing is already so washed down into fast cookie cutter like projects, streamlining the aspect of visualization is undoubtely an ever evolving field that will be taken up immediately. There is simply no choice other than to harness and adapt to these changes, or be left behind.
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