Alexander Htet Kyaw


Alexander is a researcher working at the intersection of artificial intelligence, augmented reality, robotics, design, and fabrication. His work explores how humans, machines, and materials interact within our digital and physical world. Alexander's research contributions have been published in Automation in Construction, Architectural Intelligence, the International Conference on Computational Design and Robotic Fabrication, Education and Research in Computer-Aided Architectural Design in Europe, and the Association for Computer-Aided Design in Architecture.

Currently, he is pursuing a dual degree at MIT, working towards a Master of Science in Architectural Studies in Computation along with a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. At MIT, Alexander works with the Digital Structures Lab, Media Lab, and Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab. He completed his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Cornell University, where he received a minor in Computer Information Science. At Cornell University, Alexander held research positions in the Robotic Construction Lab. His professional experience includes roles at Autodesk Research, Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM), Jenny Sabin Studio, BRIC Architecture, and Proximity Design.

Alexander's design and research have garnered recognition from the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the Museum of Craft and Design, the Land Art Generator Initiative, Google, Amazon Robotics, and the United Nations. Before pursuing his Bachelor's degree in the United States, Alexander was raised in Yangon, Myanmar. He is currently a Steve Jobs Archive Fellow and a co-founder of BendShelters, a social enterprise building easily deployable modular bamboo shelters for refugees in Myanmar.


Recent Publications 

A. H. Kyaw, S. Jeon, M. Smith, N. Gershenfeld “Speech to Reality: On-Demand Production using Natural Language, 3D Generative AI, and Discrete Robotic Assembly”, https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.18390, 2024

A. H. Kyaw, A. Xu, G. Jahn, N. van den Berg, C. Newnham, and S. Zivkovic, “Augmented Reality for high precision fabrication of Glued Laminated Timber beams,” Automation in Construction, vol. 152, May 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.autcon.2023.104912.

A. H. Kyaw, L. Spencer, S. Zivkovic, and L. Lok “Gestural Recognition for Feedback-Based Mixed Reality Fabrication a Case Study of the UnLog Tower,” in the Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Computational Design and Robotic Fabrication (CDRF), June 24th 2023

A. H. Kyaw, J.Otto and L. Lok “Active Bending in Physics-Based Mixed Reality: The design and fabrication of a reconfigurable modular bamboo system” in the Proceedings of the 41st Education and Research in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe (eCAADe), September 2023
L. Spencer, A. H. Kyaw, S. Zivkovic, and L. Lok “Extended Reality (XR) Workflows for Multi-Material Assemblies" in the Proceedings of the 43rd Annual Conference of the Association of Computer Aided Design in Architecture (ACADIA), October 2023
A. H. Kyaw, L. Spencer, and L. Lok “Human–machine Collaboration using Gesture Recognition in Mixed Reality and Robotic Fabrication,” Architectural Intelligence, vol 3, March, 2024

 




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