TT5: Back in Work Mode
September 3, 2026
This weekly email is my curated selection of interesting and useful topics related to BIM, design, and technology. I aim to provide you with some good information and a few laughs along the way. So, what did I find interesting this week? Read on to find out!
It's back-to-school week at my house. My three boys are off to 7th grade, senior year, and junior year of college, which means the place is quiet again and I'm back in work mode. That fresh-start energy runs through this week's links, all of which address the same idea: the tool is never the hard part. Knowing what you're trying to produce and building the structure that gets you there is what separates a mere demo from something real.
Speaking of fresh starts, the next cohort of Claude Workflows for Architects kicks off October 7. Join the waitlist to enroll early and get a discount. Alright, here are five things to check out this week:
#1: The AU 2026 Catalog Tells You More Than the Keynote
Kyle Bruxvoort went through all 378 session descriptions in this year's AU catalog. By his telling, the results are more interesting than any keynote will be. Over half of the architecture track involves AI, while civil is at one in five. The result is that two people can attend the same conference and come home with completely different but accurate accounts of it. AU starts September 15, and I'll be there, so if you're going, let me know!
Click here to read the full article on LinkedIn
#2: The Three-Step Method to Validate Your BIM Data
Konrad Fugas opens with a scene most of us recognize: a model is updated, you run the clash test, and then you scroll through the data, spot-check a few doors, and hope. His fix is a three-step loop in which AI drafts the requirements, you verify them, and the software performs the actual checks. The point is turning a vague EIR into a check you can defend when someone asks where the fire ratings went.
Click here to read the full article at BIM Corner
#3: Free AI Renderer for Revit, With Reusable Style Libraries
Getting one AI render out of a Revit view isn't interesting anymore. What matters is the tenth one, and whether you're retyping the same prompt from scratch every time. I built Charrette around reusable prompt libraries stored as editable JSON, so the style vocabulary you develop on one project carries to the next. It's free, open source, and runs on your own Gemini key.
Click here to read the full article at ArchSmarter
#4: Optimizing Revit Families:
A solid refresher on the family fundamentals that quietly wreck drawings when they're wrong. This article covers choosing the right category, building object-style subcategories with your own line weights, and knowing when to use symbolic lines instead of model lines. The masking region section alone is worth the read. This is exactly the kind of unglamorous work that ends up being so important.
Click here to read the full article at Fetch BIM
#5: The Discipline Required To Create The Life You Want
Ryan Holiday opened one bookstore in rural Texas and is constantly asked when he's opening the second. His argument is that most people never decide what winning looks like for them, so they default to chasing growth in every direction until the thing collapses or becomes a burden. His alternative is simple: figure out what your ideal ordinary day looks like, then evaluate every opportunity against whether it gets you more of those days or fewer.
Click here to read the full article at RyanHoliday.net
That's all from me. I hope you're having a great week!
Michael
