Architecture Is Not Just an Image, but Performance Over Time
"Urban comfort and sustainability are not utopias. They are design decisions."
In 2026, according to Julien, the year is not simply about adopting new tools in architecture and design-it marks a “change in the rules of the game.” AI has made it possible to generate fast, beautiful, and complex design options within seconds. As a result, competitive advantage is no longer determined by speed or access to tools, but by qualities that are far more difficult to replicate: vision, intuition, and the ability to ask the right questions. In an increasingly discerning and calculated market, architecture is being brought back to its essence: the human experience over time.
AI Is Changing the Rules of the Game, but the Real Shift Is in Mindset
Julien sees AI as a “game changer”-a force that is transforming not only the profession itself, but also the world beyond its traditional boundaries. What matters, in his view, is not simply what AI can do, but how it changes our understanding of competitive advantage: speed is no longer an advantage when everyone can generate design options “faster than a human.”
This has led to a fundamental shift in mindset. Rather than racing to produce faster, professionals must learn to slow down where it matters-in the stages of selection, evaluation, and decision-making. When “access to tools is no longer exclusive,” the quality of work no longer comes from possessing powerful technology, but from understanding what to search for, what to eliminate, and what is worth preserving.
Within this logic, the architect's responsibility does not become lighter; it becomes more precise. AI can generate hundreds of variations, but it cannot determine which one is appropriate for its context, its people, or its long-term objectives. The profession is therefore shifting from simply “creating” to “curating, filtering, and deciding.” Those who succeed in this new era will be the ones who use technology without allowing technology to dictate their thinking.
More Sophisticated Clients and Projects Measured by “Performance Over Time”
Over the past three to five years, Julien has observed that clients and developers have “gained experience-and lessons.” Many have gone through projects that “promised success and delivered disappointment,” leading their expectations to become more structured and discerning. Their requirements may still sometimes reflect a “design for yesterday,” but the way they evaluate projects has changed: it is no longer only about appearance, but also operational performance and long-term durability.
Julien describes an important shift: projects are increasingly driven by a holistic approach. User flow, functionality, maintenance, return on investment, site logic, environmental responsibility, and long-term aesthetics are all becoming simultaneous parameters. In other words, a beautiful design in a rendering is no longer enough to convince. It must stand up to real operation-when real people use it, real costs arise, and real time exposes its weaknesses.
On the positive side, clients are “more informed,” asking sharper questions, comparing alternatives, and calculating more carefully. Julien considers this a healthy development because it pushes architects to go deeper rather than relying on slogans. At the same time, he emphasizes that every brief still contains something fragile and deeply human: the desire to create something meaningful and enduring. The architect's role lies in navigating between strategy and emotion-creating something that “works on spreadsheets, but also works in the heart.”
The User Comes First, and Architecture Must Be “Lived” Before It Is Photographed
When asked which factor has the strongest influence on design decisions-budget, technology, sustainability, branding, or user experience-Julien answers directly: they are all part of the architectural equation and cannot be arbitrarily separated. Nevertheless, he places the user first because a project exists for its users; all other variables must revolve around that central axis.
What is particularly notable in Julien's thinking is the way he defines design value through “journey” and “time.” Design is not simply a beautiful moment, but the way a space transforms from morning to night; the movement of light; the sensation of “discovering volumes step by step”; and the “choreography between body and architecture.” If users feel nothing, the project has failed-regardless of how successful its budget, technology, brand, or communications campaign may be.
From this perspective, Julien establishes a clear hierarchy within the profession: budget creates constraints, technology opens possibilities, sustainability establishes responsibility, and branding creates identity-but all of these only become meaningful when they produce a genuine lived experience.
He concludes with a particularly striking statement: architecture must be lived before it is photographed. It is an important professional reminder in a market increasingly driven by images and speed. What endures the longest is not the beautiful frame, but the user's memory of the experience over time.
Featured Projects by:
Julien Smith & SSA Architects
Featured Projects by Julien Smith & SSA Architects
Vietnam’s Underestimated Opportunity: Public Space and the “DNA” of Street Life
Looking at the Vietnamese market, Julien identifies a major yet often overlooked opportunity: public spaces, parks, urban planning, and above all, the recognition of Vietnam's true “street identity”-movement, shade, density, and adaptability.
In his view, the street is the soul of Vietnam. It contains layers of spontaneous yet highly intelligent activity: street vendors, cafés, small shops where private life and commerce intermingle, and adaptive solutions responding to everyday needs. Julien describes this as “resilience,” a valuable form of “organic urbanism.” The challenge is not to erase it in the name of modernization, but to understand, preserve, and integrate it into future urban planning. If this everyday creativity disappears, cities will lose part of their essential character.
Following the same approach, the sustainable trend Julien is betting on for the next five to ten years is “walkability”-but one adapted to tropical conditions. He envisions generous pedestrian spaces that do not become unbearably hot: shade everywhere, greenery, canopies, and layers of materials that allow people to move comfortably. If achieved, this could transform Vietnamese cities significantly, potentially making them some of the most livable places in the region.
“Urban comfort and sustainability are not utopias. They are design decisions.”
Urban comfort and sustainability are not distant ideals, but the result of deliberate design choices.
The Most Important Skill for Young Professionals Is Collaboration and Learning “Less, but More Deeply”
When discussing the next generation of professionals, Julien places less emphasis on qualifications or personal style. Instead, he highlights the ability to work collaboratively, creative thinking grounded in practicality, a clear vision of the world they want to build, and an attitude of “love and serve people.” For him, culture is not decoration; it exists within the working process and is shaped through continuous exchange within a team.
Reflecting on his own professional journey, Julien speaks about the greatest change in his thinking: a movement toward simplicity, space, and stillness. He once learned the principle of “less is more,” but it took many years to truly embody it-years spent removing what was unnecessary without sacrificing intensity. He is increasingly less concerned with demonstrating complexity and more focused on revealing the essence: “Removing instead of adding. Creating tension through restraint.” By controlling less, architecture can sometimes say much more.
Julien Smith is a French architect who has lived in Vietnam since 2005 and is the co-founder of SSA Architects. Established in 2010, SSA operates across architecture, interior design, and furniture design, pursuing a Contemporary Tropical-Modern approach that combines local identity with a strong focus on user experience, with particular expertise in hospitality and residential projects. SSA currently has offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Koh Samui, Thailand. Julien is also a self-taught photographer and filmmaker.
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