Archviz & AI news: week of 2 November 2026

A short roundup of the software and AI news from the past week that matters to UK architects, planners and interior designers. Each item links to the original announcement, with a note on what it means in day-to-day practice.

Corona 16 adds relit Gaussian splats and parallax interiors

4 November 2026 · Sources: Chaos documentation, Chaos forum announcement

Chaos has released Corona 16 for 3ds Max and Cinema 4D. Gaussian splats can now be relit so they take light from the rest of the scene, and the compact SPZ splat format is supported. A new Parallax map fakes furnished, lit rooms behind windows using a flat plane, and parallax displacement offers a lower-memory alternative to geometry displacement. There is also a beta AI assistant, a Lighting Analysis render element, much better Vantage live link support, and in 3ds Max support for ICC display profiles introduced in 3ds Max 2027.2.

Why it matters for architects: parallax interiors are a cheap way to make the windows of a large elevation or street view look occupied without modelling every flat. Relit splats could make scanned site context sit more naturally next to the proposed building, though it is worth testing on a real scheme before relying on it.

Enscape's November release generates 3D assets from images

4 November 2026 · Source: Chaos blog

The latest Enscape release lets you search the Cosmos library with a reference image, and adds 3D Model Generation (beta), which builds a custom asset from a photo and does not use Chaos Credits while in beta. A Chaos AI Assistant (beta) answers questions inside the app and suggests assets, and Veras now opens from Enscape with an updated interface and new AI video models. Chaos Cloud now manages Enscape uploads and can hold PDFs alongside renders, and Cosmos gains more than 1,500 assets, taking the library past 13,000.

Why it matters for architects: image search and generated assets could save time furnishing review models, especially for a specific chair or light fitting a client has picked. Generated models are best kept to background objects until you have checked their scale and detail.

Forma Building Design gets Indoor Daylight and AutoCAD round trips

4 November 2026 · Source: Autodesk Forma blog

Autodesk has updated Forma Building Design, its schematic design tool included with the AEC Collection and standalone Revit licences. Indoor Daylight, now in public beta, analyses access to natural light over a typical year with no setup. You can import a DXF floor plan to trace over and export plans to AutoCAD as DWG, and new parking and furniture tools lay out stalls and rooms in plan, with furniture carried through to Revit as families.

Why it matters for architects: a quick daylight check at feasibility stage helps spot problem rooms before the layout is fixed. Clean DWG export also makes it easier to hand early plans to a consultant or visualiser without redrawing them.

D5 announces new plans and AI credits for December

3 November 2026 · Source: D5 Render

D5 says that when D5 Render 3.2 arrives in early December 2026, personal plans become Community (free), a new Basic tier from $7 a month and Pro at an unchanged $38 a month. Paid plans include monthly AI credits (1,500 or 6,000 including a launch bonus), and AI image and video generation moves into D5 Arco, its separate AI tool. Existing Pro prices and billing stay the same, the 10+ AI features inside D5 Render stay unlimited on Pro, and Lite AI Mode ends on 31 December 2026.

Why it matters for architects: the renderer itself is unchanged, but some AI features that were free trials will draw on credits. Teams that lean on D5's AI tools should check how many credits their typical month would use before renewing.

Archicad Max brings an agentic AI assistant to Archicad 30

29 October 2026 · Source: Nemetschek Group

Graphisoft's parent company, the Nemetschek Group, has launched Archicad Max, a premium Archicad subscription. It includes an AI Assistant (beta) that carries out multi-step tasks in the model, AI Assistant Spaces that answer from a firm's own standards, an updated AI Visualizer and a public Archicad MCP server (beta) so other AI tools can connect to the model. Archicad Max comes with Archicad 30 and is rolling out by region, with pricing varying by plan and region.

Why it matters for architects: Archicad practices now have an AI option that works on the model rather than on a screenshot of it. The AI Visualizer remains a concept tool, so planning and marketing images still need properly lit, accurate renders.

Need visuals that show the real design?

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