P L A I A

The key takeaways of a group discussion on Soft Values and AI for a neighborhood re-development plan in Amsterdam included thoughts on how soft values require interdisciplinary collaboration across architecture, psychology, cognitive science, AI, policy, and participation. The group discussed how human experience must remain central. Thoughts were shared about is and how economic and regulatory barriers need a stronger business case built on health, well-being, and societal value. Reflections also included considering that not everything should be quantified and how beauty, meaning, uncertainty, and subjectivity remain essential to architectural quality beyond numbers.

PLAIA is organizing several activities among researchers and stakeholders, to shape a common ground and roadmap. A workshop series of 3 workshops is a pillar activity during 2026. During Workshop 1 – Mapping & Alignment (3rd of June 2026) – we mapped current practice and AI-methods using real-life projects from architectural practices, discussed knowledge gaps, and identified the tensions worth working on together. The workshop included 2 Sessions, where the first one focused on practice-to-method mapping. In this session, mixed tables of five to six worked in parallel. Architects presented a recent completed project where soft values mattered, using printed visuals; researchers and AI/cognitive science experts proposed computational methods that could have supported it. Each table documented its process on an A2 poster and marked which input came from which profession. The output mapped how soft-value & AI-method pairings feed into the framework PLAIA outlines.

In this Session, one group focused on Soft Values and AI for a neighborhood re-development plan in Amsterdam.

THE RHAPSODY IN WEST CASE STUDY. The Rhapsody in West case study was presented by TANGRAM. Context. Developed by Tangram Architecten (2015-2021) in Amsterdam’s former deprived Kolenkit neighbourhood beside the A10 motorway. Rather than simply adding housing, TANGRAM explained the project aimed to strengthen social connection. A dense urban form combines acoustic buffering, a curved structure, and a transparent enclosed courtyard to support both safety and community life, with shared facilities (greenhouse community hub, guest accommodation, co-working). Participation was organised with several stakeholders, including the municipality, developers, and the investor. Despite the motorway, TANGRAM explained that residents experience it as calm and park-like; the inner pocket park became a neighbourhood social hub, and the project is now a living lab and award-winning example. Soft values at stake. Sense of community, nature in the city as compensation, and intuitive wayfinding. Why these are hard. The group framed this through design principles: in-between spaces (neither fully public nor private) encourage informal encounter while offering protection; culture shapes spatial use (Charles Correa’s transitional spaces, the Japanese concept of Ma); a manageable scale reduces anonymity (240 apartments, interest-based groups, shared cultural facilities); cultural diversity needs greater spatial recognition (prevalence of international communities, yet the design largely follows Dutch housing conventions); flexible layouts remain underused in practice; and design should move beyond the “average user” toward differences between individuals, households, and cultural groups. Methods discussed. Potential use of VR/AR, EEG, motion tracking, and affective computing to analyse emotion, behaviour, and spatial experience. AI and computation. Discussion addressed that AI can support design decisions but must be explainable, context-sensitive, and validated through diverse data and human feedback. Architects remain responsible for creativity, ethics, and judgement; AI should support rather than replace them. Key takeaways. Soft values require interdisciplinary collaboration across architecture, psychology, cognitive science, AI, policy, and participation. Human experience must remain central. Economic and regulatory barriers need a stronger business case built on health, well-being, and societal value. Not everything should be quantified – beauty, meaning, uncertainty, and subjectivity remain essential to architectural quality.

These workshops are financed by ClickNL. The results of these workshops are part of the PLAIA project. Do you want to know more about the results? Would you like to participate in these workshops? You can contact Michela Turrin (project lead) and Antonia Sattler (main researcher) at TU Delft.