.png)
AIA 2026 is a wrap. What a show it was.
San Diego delivered on every level: sunshine, great conversations, and a convention floor buzzing with energy. For us at Monograph, it was our third year exhibiting at AIA National, and hands down the most meaningful one yet. But this post isn't really about us. It's about the conversations we had with you: the architects, engineers, and firm leaders who stopped by, shared what's on your mind, and reminded us why this industry is worth showing up for.
Here's our honest recap of what we saw, what we heard, and what stood out.
The Floor Was Alive (and Packed)
If you made it to the expo hall this year, you know: the energy was different. Firms weren't just browsing. They were actively looking for answers. The questions coming into our booth weren't "what does your software do?" They were "can it handle this specific scenario we're dealing with?" and "we've been burned by clunky tools before. How is this different?"
That's a shift. Firms are further along in their thinking about technology than they were even a year ago. The conversations were sharper, more specific, and more urgent.
We also hosted a series of fireside chats right at our booth: candid conversations with architects and firm leaders about the business side of practice. The turnout was genuinely impressive, and the discussions went deep fast. People weren't there for polished presentations. They wanted real talk about real problems: fee erosion, staffing, project profitability, what it actually takes to run a healthy firm.
What Architects Were Talking About
After two days of hundreds of conversations with principals, project managers, business development folks, and everything in between, a few themes kept coming up:
Profitability is top of mind. Not in a panicked way, but in a "we need to get smarter about this" way. More firms are asking hard questions about whether their fees are actually covering the work, and looking for tools and frameworks to help them answer that honestly.
Time tracking is still a pain point, but the conversation has evolved. It used to be "how do we get people to track their time?" Now it's "how do we actually use that data?" Firms want to close the loop between hours logged and project outcomes.
AI is on everyone's radar, but skepticism is healthy. We heard a lot of curiosity and a lot of "show me something real." Architects aren't interested in AI for the sake of AI. They want to know: does this actually save me time on something I hate doing? The hype is starting to settle into more grounded, practical questions.
The business of architecture deserves more attention. This came up again and again. Studio owners and principals are hungry for resources, benchmarks, and community around the financial and operational side of running a firm, not just the design side.
The People Made It
One of the things that never gets old about AIA is the density of smart, passionate people in one place. We talked to firms of every size: solo practitioners, 10-person studios, and 100+ person firms all wrestling with versions of the same core challenges.
.jpg)
We also got to reconnect with a lot of existing Monograph customers. Hearing how teams are using the platform in the wild, the workarounds they've found, the features they love, the things they wish were different, is genuinely some of the most valuable feedback we get all year. (And yes, we took notes. The product team will be hearing about it.)
The customer conversations had a different quality to them too. Zero gripes, a lot of pride. We heard people telling their colleagues about Monograph, in real time, right at the booth. That's the kind of thing you can't manufacture.
If You Missed It (Or Want to Go Deeper)
Whether you were at AIA and want to keep the conversation going, or you didn't make it this year and are curious what you missed, we're always up for talking about the business of architecture.
A few resources worth checking out:
- 2026 A&E Benchmarks Report: Data on AI adoption, profitability, and what's next for firms like yours
- Monograph Pipeline: If you heard about it at the show and want to dig in
- Book a demo: Thirty minutes, no pressure, we'll show you what's relevant to your firm
See You Next Year
AIA 2026 was a reminder of something we genuinely believe: the architecture profession is full of people who care deeply about craft, about their teams, about building something that lasts. That's the community we want to serve.
Thanks to everyone who stopped by Booth #2945, asked hard questions, challenged our thinking, and made the two days worth every early morning. We'll see you next year.
