Tracy Alloway

But when you're given a private assignment, such as a JP Morgan building or a Bloomberg office, how do you think about the public good aspect of design?

Why do you think certain countries, and you brought up the UK there, but you could possibly say the same for the US as well, why do you think certain countries struggle with big infrastructure?

There's a mock-up right behind you.

I had no idea.

Yeah.

That's fascinating.

Since you brought up rationing,

How do budgets work for buildings?

If I'm a client of Foster and Partners, One Can Dream, and I come to you and I say, I want to build a building, do I present you with a particular figure or a range, or do you study my needs and then you come back with a suggested budget?

You know, you mentioned productivity earlier, and this is slightly tangential to architecture, but I would be very curious to get your thoughts.

We've seen productivity gains in virtually every industry on earth in recent decades, except famously the construction industry.

In the US, construction has lagged behind in terms of productivity.

I'm pretty sure it's a similar story in the UK and perhaps some other countries around the world.

Do you have a theory for why that is?

Why hasn't construction, I guess, developed as much as a lot of other industries technologically?

He's been on this podcast many times.

They actually build it.

I'm sure this question will not be unexpected for you, but what happens to architects in the age of AI?

Because you could mount a very clear argument that if we have new technology that's able to do pretty much everything, including potentially modeling and designing buildings to very specific specs and needs, that that will mean that architects are perhaps even less well remunerated than they are now.

All right, Norman Foster, thank you so much for coming on OddLots.