AI Is a Tool - And Like Any Tool, It Depends on Who’s Using It
- Eric McQuiston, PLA
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
There’s a lot of controversy right now around artificial intelligence in the design professions, especially in landscape architecture. Some see it as a threat. Others see it as a shortcut.
I see it differently.
AI is a tool.
Nothing more—and nothing less.
And if you’ve been in this profession long enough, you recognize this moment.
We’ve Been Here Before
Thirty years ago, CAD changed everything.
It didn’t make designers obsolete. It made them more capable.
Drafting became faster. Revisions became easier. Coordination between disciplines improved dramatically. We could explore more options in less time and communicate ideas more clearly.
But CAD never did the thinking for us.
It simply gave us a better way to express it.
The same is true of AI—only now the tool is reaching further upstream into the design process itself.
The Difference This Time
AI doesn’t just help us draw.
It helps us explore.
It can generate concepts, suggest plant palettes, visualize spaces, and organize information in seconds. That’s powerful.
But let’s be clear about something.
AI doesn’t understand a site.
It doesn’t walk the property. It doesn’t read drainage patterns the way a trained eye does. It doesn’t know how water actually moves, how soils behave, how materials go together, or how a contractor will build what’s on paper.
It produces output.
It does not assume responsibility.
That distinction matters.
A Tool in the Right Hands
In the hands of a trained landscape architect, AI becomes incredibly valuable.
It allows us to:
Rapidly test ideas in early concept stages
Explore alternatives that might not have been considered otherwise
Communicate intent more effectively with clients
Streamline research and specification development
Improve efficiency in documentation and coordination
In other words, it extends our reach.
It gives us the ability to do more—faster—without sacrificing quality.
But only if we stay in control of the process.
Because the moment AI starts driving decisions instead of supporting them, we have a problem.
The Risk Isn’t the Tool—It’s the Shortcut
What concerns me isn’t AI itself.
It’s the growing tendency to treat it as a substitute for experience.
We’re starting to see projects where AI-generated images are setting expectations before feasibility is ever considered. Designs that look compelling on screen but fall apart under real-world conditions.
Plant selections that don’t belong.
Hardscape that can’t be built.
Budgets that were never grounded in reality.
Drainage that was never thought through.
I’ve had contractors tell me outright—the design doesn’t work. Homeowners frustrated because what they were shown doesn’t match what can actually be built.
That’s not a failure of AI.
That’s a failure in how the tool is being used.
Design Is Still a Responsibility
This is where I think our profession needs to speak more clearly.
Landscape architecture is not just about creating attractive images. It carries responsibility—for how spaces function, how they are built, and how they perform over time.
We deal with grading and drainage that can impact structures and adjacent properties. We select plant material that has to survive in specific conditions. We design spaces that people invest in, live with, and maintain.
Those decisions matter.
And they require judgment.
AI can support that process—but it cannot replace it.
The Opportunity in Front of Us
If we approach this the right way, AI has the potential to elevate our profession.
It can free up time spent on repetitive tasks.
It can improve how we communicate ideas.
It can allow us to explore more thoughtful, well-considered solutions.
But only if we remain the ones making the decisions.
The designers who understand both the tool and the work will be able to deliver at a level that simply wasn’t possible before.
The ones who rely on the tool without understanding the work will struggle.
That gap is going to become more obvious, not less.
Where This Is Headed
AI isn’t going away.
And it’s not going to replace trained designers anytime soon.
But it will absolutely reshape expectations—around speed, communication, and output.
The question is whether we meet that moment with discipline or with shortcuts.
From my perspective, the path forward is simple:
Use the tool.
Master the tool.
But don’t confuse the tool with the work.
Final Thought
A shovel in the hands of a laborer and a shovel in the hands of a skilled contractor are not the same thing.
The tool is identical.
The outcome is not.
AI is no different.
~Eric
Comments