University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence Receives 2026 AIA Wisconsin Design Merit Award
The University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence (CAI) received the 2026 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Wisconsin Design Merit Award for overall design excellence. The seven-story, 343,000-square-foot facility brings together computer sciences, statistics, the Information School, biostatistics and medical informatics, the Data Science Institute, and the Center for High Throughput Computing. Designed as a vertical campus, the building uses a daylight-filled central atrium, prominent stairs, terraces, and shared spaces to encourage cross-disciplinary interaction. Research and academic environments support work in data science, privacy, quantum computing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and related fields.
Affiliated Engineers, Inc. (AEI) provided mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, instrumentation and controls, and sustainable engineering design services, as well as master planning services. UW–Madison set a goal for the project to become its most sustainable building. AEI developed comparative energy models to evaluate energy conservation measures, document code compliance, and inform decisions related to energy performance, air quality, and thermal comfort. The building systems include a 100% outside-air system with two-pipe active chilled beams, connection to the campus chilled water system, and LED lighting with vacancy sensing and daylight-responsive dimming. The lighting design is estimated to reduce consumption by 61% compared with the ASHRAE 90.1-2016 baseline.
A 162-kW photovoltaic array comprising nearly 300 rooftop solar panels generates nearly 200,000 kWh annually, offsetting an estimated 3% of total building energy use and 7% of total building energy cost. Multiple green roofs and water-efficient systems further support the project’s sustainability objectives. The project is currently seeking LEED® Platinum certification.
AEI’s contributions also extended to the campus infrastructure serving the facility. The team designed thermal utility and normal power services, including replacement of approximately 200 lineal feet of an existing walkable steam tunnel and a steam pit. This supported the replacement of associated high- and low-pressure steam, low-pressure and pumped condensate, and compressed air utilities, as well as new steam box conduit branches serving the facility and an adjacent existing campus building.
The CAI gives UW–Madison a centralized space for a growing area of education and research while advancing the university’s environmental performance goals. The 2026 AIA Wisconsin Design Award recognizes the CAI’s design, shaped to bring people and disciplines together while reducing the resources needed to support their work.