DigitalFUTURES 2025 

What is digital fabrication, and why does it matter?

Forum Time

 06 / 06 / 2025  20:00-21:30 (GMT+8)

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826 8681 9359

Password: 526111

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DigitalFUTURES 2025 

Forum Panelist

Nils Opgenorth is a Research Assistant at the Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD), specializing in computational timber architecture and on-site construction. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Leibniz University Hannover and a Master’s degree in Integrative Technologies and Architectural Design Research (ITECH) from the University of Stuttgart.

Prior to joining ICD, Nils taught at the Institute for Digital Architectural Methods in Hannover. During his time there, he developed a building system made of thin sheets capable of withstanding bending loads, which was exhibited at the Sprengel Museum Hannover.

His master’s thesis, co-authored with Daniel Locatelli, titled Cross-Scale Architecture: A Robotic Timber Fabrication System for On-Site Lamination, received the IntCDC Master’s Thesis Award 2021. The thesis proposed a heterogeneousmulti-scale robotic construction system to further advance the automation of on-site timber architecture.

Jingyuan (Yaoyao) Meng is an award-winning interdisciplinary designer, robotics specialist, and recognized UK Global Talent. She teaches applied robotic technologies at B-made (Bartlett Manufacturing and Design Exchange) and serves as a thesis tutor for the Bio-Integrated Design program at the Bartlett School of Architecture.

Meng’s research centers on circular design strategies that identify potential intervention points to foster new urban metabolisms—primarily through the regeneration of waste materials. This approach seeks to reduce rising levels of waste, mitigate raw material shortages, and lower embodied carbon in the built environment. By integrating advanced computational design with robotic fabrication techniques, she is developing a platform for bespoke, large-scale production of sustainable building components.

She also plays a key role in Bio-ID research projects, which have been showcased in several prominent exhibitions. For instance, Calcareous Arabesque was featured in the Waste Age exhibition at the London Design Museum, while Augmented Polycultures was presented in the Water Futures exhibition at the Museum of Art and Industry, as well as the Museum für Gestaltung in Zurich.

Postdoctoral Researcher at the Architectural Algorithms & Applications Laboratory (Lab. AAA), Southeast University School of Architecture, Dr. Wang holds a PhD from RMIT University, Australia, supervised by Roland Snooks and Fabio Zambetta. Formerly a Master’s Design Studio Tutor (sessional) at RMIT’s School of Architecture and Urban Design and Doctoral Researcher at the Tectonic Formation Lab, his research spans artificial intelligence, generative architectural design, mixed reality, and digital fabrication, focusing on computational intelligence technologies for interdisciplinary innovation in architectural design and construction. Since 2019, he has co-directed multiple academic programs including RMIT's Natural Computing Master's studio, DigitalFUTURES-2021 workshop Behavioral Tectonics, and IAAC's Mixed-Reality Agency workshop. He has led/participated in demonstrative digital fabrication projects exhibited at international venues including NGV Melbourne Design Week, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale, DigitalFUTURES, Monash ADR, and CAADRIA.

Chai Hua, Associate Professor at Tongji University's College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and a member of the Computational Design Academic Committee of the Architectural Society of China. He holds a joint Ph.D. from Tongji University and the University of Stuttgart, Germany, and has been selected for the Postdoctoral Innovation Talent Program and Super Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Shanghai. Chai Hua has long been engaged in research on computational design and robotic construction in architecture, with a focus on key issues such as the high-performance design principles of timber structures, mass customization construction processes, and design-construction collaboration mechanisms. He has led three research projects, including a National Natural Science Foundation of China (Youth Program), a second-level project of the National Key Research and Development Program, and a general postdoctoral fund project. He has also been a core member in projects like the National Key Research and Development Program's International Governmental S & T Innovation Cooperation project and the Sino-German Science Center's international cooperation project. His honors include the Young CAADRIA Award and the DigitalFUTURES Young Award.