Special planning: Can AI replace lighting design? The designer has something to say

In today's era of turbulent technological waves, artificial intelligence (AI), with its astonishing development speed, is like a powerful whirlwind, sweeping across all fields. From smart voice assistants to self-driving cars, from medical diagnosis to financial analysis, AI is everywhere, profoundly changing the way we live and work.

In this field of lighting design, which is full of infinite creativity and distinctive personality, how will the role of lighting designers change under the strong impact of AI? Will it be gradually replaced and disappear in the torrent of technological development? Or can it work hand in hand with AI to create a brilliant future? What changes will it bring to the work of lighting designers? With this issue that has attracted much attention and is full of controversy, we interviewed six designers in the industry. Let us step into their perspective and explore the future of lighting design in the new era of technology.

Chen Zhiwei, Design Director of Independent Lighting Designer: Don’t be blindly obsessed, nor should you hide your illness and avoid medical treatment.

Chen Zhiwei believes that the development of AI technology is a product of the progress of the times and an effective complement to cost reduction and efficiency improvement. AI technology should be viewed objectively, and we should not be blindly obsessed with it, nor should we "hidden illnesses and avoid medical treatment." As a lighting designer, you cannot rely too much on AI technology and give up traditional PS technology, EVO computing, 3D, SU, VR, D5 rendering and other skills. If we shift our focus to AI technology, which is still changing and innovating, we will easily face a "fire in the backyard" and the project will not be delivered on time. Therefore, he believes that one should maintain a learning attitude towards AI and appropriately apply AI technology in appropriate projects in order to achieve the effect of "cost reduction and efficiency increase".

Regarding the conveniences that AI technology brings to lighting design, he said that in his work, he will use AI technology to sort out text language and organizational framework, and will also use AI as a database to search for the required content. He also mentioned that the current AI technology still has certain flaws, and the renderings produced by AI require the superposition of multiple images in the post-PS process.

Chen Zhiwei also expressed his opinion on whether AI can replace the work of designers. He expressed that he was not worried. The value of design is to output the "soul", and AI is a tool to express the "soul". The final decision whether to use AI results or not depends on the judgment of the designer and Party A. In the process of plan exchange, it is more about the "empathy" between the designer and Party A, rather than a stunning AI rendering.

Luo Huisheng, Design Director of Leyard Smart Technology Group Co., Ltd.: AI technology will promote changes in the lighting industry

Luo Huisheng also gave his own views on the impact of AI technology on lighting design. "I personally am very optimistic about the future of AI technology, just like the emergence of the Internet 20 years ago. From hearsay and learning about the Internet through games, to using the Internet to learn professional knowledge in college, and now the Internet has penetrated into every aspect of our lives, and we are now almost inseparable from the Internet," Luo Huisheng said.

Luo Huisheng said that since 2022, he has learned about AI-related information from forum lectures and the Internet, and has been curious to understand AI technology. He has tried to use AI to dub animations, change faces and scenes with AI, and then use AI to create pictures, and now use AI to generate videos. Witnessing the development of AI technology along the way made him feel that the lighting industry is about to usher in new changes.

He further said that the emergence of AI technology not only greatly reduces the cost of making renderings but also frees up more time for designers to engage in design creativity. Now, he is trying to use chatgpt to write light show script stories and generate storyboard illustrations in the project; he is trying to use midjourney text-based pictures/picture-based pictures in the concept planning stage. From the conception of the plan to the generation of the intention diagram, basically all is done by one person, saving communication time and reducing communication costs.

Regarding the question of whether AI can replace designers, he said: "AI cannot replace designers. After all, AI is only completing people's conscious visual expression; just like the advent of cars, coachmen not only did not lose their jobs but became car drivers. They learned car driving skills, which improved the quality of transportation services and shortened transportation time."

Zhou Tongyao, director of the Digital Animation Department of the School of New Media, Jilin University of the Arts: The creative and creative field of lighting design will not be replaced by AI

Zhou Tongyao said that lighting design is an integrated field of inter-professional disciplines. At the current stage, AI technology is more used as a tool to assist the development of lighting and lighting design. It can not only enhance the diversity of lighting design and create more possibilities, but also improve the efficiency of creators, while overall improving people's aesthetic experience of lighting design.

Regarding the convenience of AI technology in lighting design work, Zhou Tongyao said that AI has become an indispensable part of his work. The efficiency of AI makes many lighting designers inseparable from it when making conceptual plans in the early stage, and rely more on it when writing and revising content. When writing codes for interactive content, he prefers to use AI for assistance. When using interactive software to write logic, AI acts as a database for intelligent search, not only providing tips but also bringing new creative ideas. AI allows him to do his job better, while also helping him learn and master more knowledge.

Zhou Tongyao has his own unique views on whether AI can replace the work of designers. He believes that the creative and creative fields of lighting design will not be replaced by AI. The emergence of AI will prompt lighting designers to shift from pure production to more creative work, which is "the transition from traditional design to creativity."

He further added that with the development of AI, single vertical fields such as design, painting, music, and video production are more likely to be replaced. If lighting designers’ work involves intelligent control, design, video, music, and requires a deep understanding of hardware and software, then AI is just a tool in their hands. In the future, the more single disciplines and jobs are, the more likely they will be replaced by AI, while cross-disciplinary, integrated and cross-field fields will be difficult to be replaced by AI. Furthermore, the emergence of AI will prompt lighting designers to expand their professional skills to a wider range of fields.

Zhang Xiang, designer of Hunan Guangyun Construction Engineering Co., Ltd.: Basic lighting design positions may be optimized by AI

Zhang Xiang said that AI is mainly a new technology based on data collection, analysis, learning, and finally implementation. To this end, the first choice for quantifiable data and digital applications in the lighting industry must be AI technology. In particular, this technology has a very powerful effect on lighting design work to a certain extent, especially in the early stages of lighting design. It has a great assisting effect in improving work efficiency.

She further said that in fact, in the design concept stage, there is already action to generate conceptual intention diagrams through AI. For a long time, the most commonly used applications in lighting design have definitely been calculations and drawings, and calculations are what AI is best at, but the results are less effective. Currently, there is no AI drawing that can be used directly in the field of lighting design, and all needs to be modified, but it can still help lighting designers reduce their workload.

She finally predicted that as the database of AI in lighting applications becomes more and more mature and rich, lighting design projects that are relatively conventional, simple and not very creative may be replaced by AI, and some basic lighting design jobs may also be optimized due to the existence of AI. However, creative and personalized design AI cannot replace it, because it can never replace human thinking. What is worth looking forward to is that the auxiliary performance of AI will be further optimized to help the lighting design industry solve more practical problems.

Tong Xiaoqing, chief designer of China Northwest Architectural Design Institute Co., Ltd.: AI brings happiness but also gives you a "tasteless" sting

Tong Xiaoqing said that AI technology is a technology that presents human intelligence for human-machine cooperation. In the lighting industry, AI technology plays a role in inspiring ways of thinking, cross-border integration, and building personalized applications.

She pointed out that AI technology has many significant advantages. It can quickly process a large amount of data and information, generate a variety of lighting solutions in a short time through complex algorithms, and perform personalized design customization, providing designers with new ideas and ideas, stimulating their creativity, and improving their work efficiency. At the same time, she also pointed out that AI technology is insufficient. In the generation of night scene renderings, AI technology is limited to the creation of internal light-transmitting environments and ambient light atmosphere. It cannot generate lighting renderings of building exterior facades, and will even change the building structure. She finally lamented that while AI brings you happiness, it will also give you "tasteless" pain.

Regarding the question of whether AI technology can replace designers, she said, "In the long run, the rapid development of AI technology will have a certain impact and change on the working methods and development direction of the industry. For example, basic and repetitive work may gradually be replaced by AI."

She also said that lighting design is not only a technology, but also an art that requires the designer's thoughts and emotions. From planning to implementation of a project, designers need to communicate face-to-face with customers, gain an in-depth understanding of customer needs, and make flexible adjustments based on customer feedback to provide customers with a more tailored design solution. This kind of emotional connection and trust building between people is an irreplaceable advantage for lighting designers, which is also something that AI cannot achieve for the time being.

She further added that AI is more likely to become a powerful tool for lighting designers, helping designers improve work efficiency and expand design ideas. As a designer, you should constantly learn and master new AI technologies and tools, integrate them into your work, improve work efficiency and design quality, adapt to market needs and changes, and at the same time create more outstanding lighting works.

Zhu Huaying, Chief Designer of First Architectural Technology Co., Ltd.: AI technology is the designer’s “powerful assistant”

Zhu Huaying said that AI technology plays a role in promoting the development of lighting design. She said that she learned from daily information tweets and communication with manufacturers that AI technology is more accurate and convenient in controlling light color temperature, color, brightness, etc., and can effectively save manpower and costs. In addition, when daily designers are running out of inspiration, AI technology can add fuel to the fire, provide more thinking possibilities and open up new ideas; accurate calculations can reduce some repetitive work and improve work efficiency.

Zhu Huaying also said that during the design concept stage, she began to use AI to understand the urban landscape, history and culture, customs and other information where the project is located, sort out the story lines related to the project, and refine design inspiration. This not only improves work efficiency, but also enhances self-awareness.

Regarding the question of whether AI technology can replace designers, Zhu Huaying said that AI cannot replace designers. AI technology only provides designers with design inspiration and ideas, and is a powerful "little assistant" for designers. From planning to implementation of a project, this process is a collision of ideas between people. Their design creativity comes from what they see and feel in life, the influence of art and culture, and their own unique aesthetics. She further said that at present, making a design solution is not simply limited to one's own field, but also requires the integration of multiple disciplines, which cannot be replaced by cookie-cutter digital codes.

Conclusion

From the perspectives of six designers, the development of AI technology is a product of the progress of the times, which has promoted the transformation of the lighting industry and promoted the development of lighting design. AI technology only provides designers with design inspiration and ideas, stimulates designers’ creative potential, and is a “right-hand assistant” for designers. The current AI technology is not yet mature and there are still many shortcomings.

Therefore, don’t rely too much on AI, take its essence, use its advantages to integrate into your work, join forces, give full play to their respective advantages, improve work efficiency and design quality, adapt to market needs and changes, and build more quality products for the lighting industry.

There are surprises here

In order to improve the knowledge and professional skills of lighting practitioners in lighting design, help lighting practitioners learn AI technology more systematically, master cutting-edge AI tools, adapt to the needs of innovation and development in the lighting industry, and promote high-quality development of the industry. China Photo Network and Metaverse Future Aesthetics Studio will hold the 2024 AIGC (Artificial Intelligence) Lighting Design Application Practical Training Camp in Foshan, Guangdong, scheduled for September 12th to September 14th. This is not only an innovation in technology, but also a leap in art and aesthetics!

For more information, please click: Teachers from famous schools, practical transformation! AIGC Lighting Design Special Training Camp enrollment countdown!

Editor: Yan Zhixiang