00:00Will AI design the next airplane?
00:03What will be the impacts of AI in engineering?
00:13Today we are going to talk about a subject that is transforming the way everything around
00:19us is designed.
00:20From the airplane you board to the bridge you cross every day.
00:25When we hear that artificial intelligence can design the next commercial airplane, the
00:33question that comes to mind isn't just whether that's possible.
00:38But what does this technology mean for engineering as a whole?
00:43AI is changing the way engineers work in practically every field.
00:48And understanding how this happens is essential to understanding the future of the things
00:54we use every day.
00:57To understand the impact of artificial intelligence on engineering, we first need to understand
01:03how engineering design is traditionally done.
01:07When an engineer needs to design a part, a structure, or a system, he starts from a set
01:15of requirements.
01:16What load this part needs to withstand?
01:19What material will be used?
01:23What is the maximum acceptable cost?
01:26And what are the manufacturing constraints?
01:29Based on these definitions, the engineer defines the geometry, simulates its behavior, identifies
01:36failure points, adjusts the design, and repeats the process until reaching a solution that works.
01:43This cycle can take weeks, months, or even years.
01:50Depending on the complexity of the project, and each iteration takes time and resources.
01:58But how does artificial intelligence fit into this process?
02:03The most impactful application of AI in engineering today is called generative design.
02:12The idea is it's relatively simple to understand.
02:17Instead of the engineer drawing the part and then testing if it works, he describes to the
02:23software, what the objectives and constraints of the project are, and the algorithm generates
02:30hundreds or even thousands of geometry alternatives that meet these parameters.
02:37The engineer defines the forces the part will undergo, the available material, the manufacturing
02:44method, and the weight and cost limits.
02:47AI then explores combinations of shapes that a human would hardly be able to imagine.
02:55Many of them have an organic appearance, almost like tree roots or bone structures, which presents
03:03the best options for the engineer to evaluate and choose from.
03:07A real example of this technology involved Airbus.
03:11This happened in partnership with Autodesk.
03:16Used generative design to redesign the internal partition that separates the passenger cabin from
03:23the galley, which is the airplane's kitchen.
03:26The original part weighed about 13 kilos.
03:29And the version redesigned by AI became approximately 45% lighter.
03:37The company estimated that, considering the entire fleet of aircraft.
03:42This weight reduction could represent savings of up to 465,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year.
03:52Since a lighter aircraft consumes less fuel.
03:56NASA also used generative design to design the legs of the lander, a landing craft intended for missions
04:04to the moons of Jupiter and Saturn.
04:07And the result was a structure 35% lighter than the original design.
04:15Generative design is just one of the ways AI is being used in engineering.
04:22Are there other ways?
04:24Yes, there are several.
04:26In civil engineering, for example, artificial intelligence is being used to optimize the
04:33design of bridges, buildings, and drainage systems.
04:37The company Bentley Systems launched in 2024.
04:41Software called OpenSitePlus and uses generative AI to help civil engineers design sites for construction.
04:53And the company claims that the tool can deliver projects up to 10 times faster than traditional
05:01methods.
05:01AI algorithms are able to analyze huge volumes of structural data and environmental data to
05:10test how different configurations of a bridge behave under real conditions of wind, traffic,
05:17and temperature even before the first pile is driven into the ground.
05:22In mechanical engineering, AI is accelerating product development in the automotive, industrial,
05:30and consumer goods industries.
05:32Studies indicate that in a part designed by conventional methods, between 40% and 80% of the material may
05:40not be structurally contributing to the strength of the part.
05:45In other words, it's material that's just left over.
05:49Generative design can remove this excess while maintaining the same load capacity, with weight
05:55reductions ranging from 30% to 50%, depending on the component and the manufacturing process.
06:03The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT, has been offering since 2025 a course specifically
06:13dedicated to teaching mechanical engineers how to apply machine learning and AI to product
06:20design projects.
06:22In aeronautical engineering, in addition to generative design, AI is already being used in predictive
06:29maintenance of aircraft.
06:31Airbus developed, in partnership with Palantir, the Skywise platform, which collects real-time
06:39flight data from more than 12,000 connected commercial aircraft.
06:45This data includes more than 40,000 parameters from different aircraft systems.
06:52And AI algorithms analyze this volume of information to identify patterns that precede component failures.
06:59Boeing 787 generates up to 500 gigabytes of data per flight.
07:08And AI can predict weeks in advance when a part will need to be replaced, allowing maintenance
07:16to be scheduled before the failure happens.
07:19Delta Air Airlines, which adopted predictive maintenance systems in its fleet, reported a reduction in cancellations
07:27due to technical failures, from 5,600 per year to just 55, which represents a significant drop, approximately 99%.
07:40But if AI is that capable, will it replace engineers?
07:45The short answer is no, and understanding why is essential to grasp the real impact of this technology.
07:53Artificial intelligence is extremely efficient at exploring thousands of geometric combinations, analyzing
08:02huge volumes of data, and identifying patterns that would escape human perception.
08:08But it can't, on its own, define a project's objectives, understand the day-to-day realities of a construction
08:15site, or negotiate trade-offs between cost and performance, or assess whether a solution makes
08:22sense in the social and environmental context where it will be applied.
08:26The engineer is still responsible for defining the criteria, interpreting the results, and making
08:33the final decision.
08:34What else?
08:35What changes is that with AI, he now has at his disposal a tool that expands the range of
08:44solutions he can consider dramatically, and shortens the time between the idea and the test.
08:51But there are also important technical limitations.
08:55AI algorithms need to be trained with data, and the quality of the result depends directly
09:03on the quality of that data.
09:06If the input data is incomplete or biased, the solutions generated may be inadequate.
09:14Furthermore, in projects involving structural safety, such as buildings, bridges, and aircraft,
09:20any solution proposed by AI must undergo rigorous validation, including physical simulations and
09:29real-world testing, before being approved.
09:32AI does not eliminate the need for verification.
09:36It increases the number of solution candidates that reach the testing phase.
09:42And what can we expect from the future?
09:45The trend is that artificial intelligence will become an integrated part of engineers' daily
09:52work, just as CAD software has over the past decades.
09:57The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States projects job growth in all engineering
10:04categories through 2034, including the areas most exposed to AI, such as electrical and aerospace
10:13engineering, with growth rates between 6% and 11%.
10:18This indicates that, even with the automation of tasks, the demand for engineers keeps growing,
10:24and the professional profile is changing to incorporate skills in data analysis and AI.
10:30The impact of AI on engineering is not just about doing what was already being done faster.
10:36It's allowing us to explore solutions that were previously unimaginable.
10:41Reducing material and energy consumption in manufacturing, anticipating failures before they happen,
10:49and freeing the engineer from repetitive tasks, so that they can focus on decisions that require human judgment.
10:57The next airplane you board will probably have components designed with the help of AI.
11:04But the decision about how these components fit into the whole aircraft, and whether they are safe to carry passengers,
11:14is still up to those who understand the subject.
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11:53And you...
11:54Did you already know that artificial intelligence was present in so many stages of engineering?
12:00Do you think it will further transform the way things are designed?
12:06Or do you think there are limits to what they can do?
12:09Leave your thoughts in the comments.
12:11I want to know!
12:12Here are two interesting videos that you need to watch to expand your knowledge and explore your curiosity.
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12:28That's it engineering enthusiasts!
12:30Take care and I'll see you in the next...
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