GoKawiilSee all the honorees of Fast Company’s 2026 Innovation by Design Awards in the architectural design category. The architectural design category of Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Awards honors buildings, structures, and interior designs that solve problems in the built environment. This year’s winner, University of California, Berkeley—Grimes Engineering Center By Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, is an adaptive-reuse building that uses a novel seismic-responsive structural system for precedent-setting earthquake resilience. See all of the honorees below.
The best architectural design of 2026
Why This Matters
The 2026 Innovation by Design Awards highlight groundbreaking architectural designs that address real-world problems, such as earthquake resilience. The winning project at UC Berkeley demonstrates innovative structural engineering that could influence future building safety standards. This recognition underscores the importance of sustainable and resilient design in the evolving built environment.
Key Takeaways
- The award recognizes innovative solutions in architecture that solve environmental and safety challenges.
- UC Berkeley's winning building features a novel seismic-responsive structural system.
- The awards highlight the growing importance of resilient and sustainable design in the industry.
Explore topics:
fast company
innovation by design
skidmore
owings
and merrill
uc berkeley
seismic-responsive
Get alerts for these topics