Kritika Kharbanda

Henning Larsen

Leading sustainability strategies at Henning Larsen’s New York office, Kritika Kharbanda spearheads diverse projects worldwide, from educational, cultural, and civic buildings to labs, offices, and masterplans. Her work lies at the intersection of architecture, sustainability, and technology. With a Master in Design Studies specializing in Energy and Environments from Harvard GSD with cross-enrollment at MIT, Kritika was a Social Innovation and Change Initiative Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School. Her commitments within the broader building science community include contributing to the global Carbon Leadership Forum, International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA), and local carbon-focused policy efforts in Boston and New York City.

Niknaz Aftahi

aec+tech

Niknaz is the CEO and co-founder at aec+tech, an all-in-one innovation platform and community connecting AEC/O (Architecture, Engineering, Construction & Operations) professionals with the latest tools and technologies. Prior to launching aec+tech Niknaz practiced architecture in the bay area, California, both as a design professional as well as a design technologist. Niknaz is passionate about technology and innovation in the AEC space, and she has been a keynote speaker at various international aec-tech events. Niknaz is a member of AIA San Francisco design technology committee, and has also been developing curriculum and teaching architecture courses online to Bahai students in Iran who continue to be deprived of access to universities in their own country.

Ravi Bhatia

Skanska

PE, PMP, MBA, DBIA

CONSTRUCTION – 35 YEARS PROGRAM, PROJECT AND STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE

Business Development Manager at Skanska USA Civil Spearheading Construction Business Strategy and Innovation Forging partnerships with investors, clients, consultants, suppliers, regulators, contractors and employees to drive business success. Spearheading innovation and business strategy to deliver value within complex project environments.

Portfolio of over $5 Billion in completed projects, in the U.S. and Canada. 30 years of proven construction business experience, spanning complex and high-visibility commercial construction, core and shell, electrical, transportation, high-technology, critical systems and design-build infrastructure projects (including P3) for real estate developers, multinational corporations, technology providers, private investors, contractors and large public institutions.

Gained significant supply chain experience in General Electric’s prestigious Technical Marketing Program (Construction Equipment Sales). Completed Alstom’s Leadership Development Program. Visiting faculty at New York University, Fordham University (Real Estate Institute) and Georgetown University – Taught graduate-level courses in project management, leadership, innovation, risk management, entrepreneurship and negotiation.

Registered Professional Engineer (PE), certified Design-Build (DBIA) and Project Management Professional (PMP), with a M.S. in Telecommunications & Information Management from New York University and a Master of Business Administration from Hofstra University. Earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering (w/Computer Science minor) from Polytechnic University. Completed Stanford University’s (Graduate School of Business) Professional Certificate program in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Cornell University’s Project Leadership Program, and Harvard University’s Advanced Real Estate Finance program.

Natasha Luthra

CannonDesign

Natasha is the Design Technology Leader at CannonDesign. Recognized as one of the industry’s foremost design technology influencers, she leads the implementation of advanced design technologies, including computational tools and workflows, immersive realities, artificial intelligence, advanced analysis and visualization, and other data-informed processes. In this role, Natasha oversees the design technology team, which is focused on developing new applications through R&D, implements best practices and oversees firm-wide adoption of the latest tools and programs.

She has 15 years’ experience leading technological advances at global design firms. Previously, she was the Director of Emerging Technologies with Jacobs where she explored and implemented new tools to strengthen the firm’s design and delivery efforts. One of her greatest strengths is identifying and demystifying technology trends to help teams anticipate what the future of design will look like and stay focused on those that can achieve true impact.

Natasha is a sought-after thought leader, having presented at the Leadership Forum at Autodesk University, BILT NA, BIMForum and the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) National Convention. She has been featured in and written articles for Architect Magazine, Design Intelligence, AIA YAF Connection and AUGIWorld. In 2018, she was the Chair for Technology in Architectural Practice, the American Institute of Architects’ knowledge community focused on the intersection of technology and architecture.

Ilkay C. Standard

GenX

Ilkay Can-Standard is an architectural technologist and founder of GENx Design and Technology, a modern innovation hub committed to lead the 4th Industrial Revolution at a global scale. With 15 years of experience in the AEC industry, Ilkay has managed projects that required the most advanced use of technologies in 7 different countries. GENx teams focus on diminishing the gaps in the AEC industry and helping stakeholders achieve intended budgets, timelines and sustainability objectives through the integration of advanced technologies to project management. In addition to advancing Building Information Modeling (BIM) experience in high-rise and large-scale projects, her team is leading Generative Design and Automation through CATIA and 3DS Platforms.

İlkay is an NJIT Graduate alumnus of Architecture and is currently teaching at NYU while simultaneously collaborating with multiple universities across the globe. Prior to founding GENx, İlkay was an Associate Principal at Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates in NYC where she led multiple award-winning projects both locally and globally. As previous Chair of CTBUH Future Leaders Global Committee and current Board of Trustee CTBUH NY Chapter, she is fostering open dialogue between architects, engineers, developers and the academia to develop responsible buildings and cities for the future.

Ali T.Ghomi

GraphX

Ali T.Ghomi is the founder of GraphX which specializes in computational design, parametric modeling, custom tool development, and workflow optimization. He is also a researcher at the Advanced Building Construction Lab at CCNY. Before that, he was a lead designer and the head of the computational design team at CetraRuddy Architecture, and a research associate at the Polyhedral Structures Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania.

Keyan Rahimzadeh

Formulate Ltd.

Keyan Rahimzadeh, Founder/ Formulate Ltd. Keyan combines his dual education in architecture and structural engineering with a deep expertise in computational design. He spent 10 years at Front, Inc. developing facade systems for high profile projects around the world and working with many premier global design firms. He then went on to lead the Computational Design team for Grimshaw’s New York Studio, and now runs an independent consultancy focused on automation and digital processes for designers and builders. His career has been especially focused on parametric design, complex simulations, DfMA, and anything related to the process of transforming data into real, physical constructions.

Jennifer Siqueira

Bernheimer Architects

Jennifer, aka Je, joined BA in early 2022 as Project Architect. She received both undergraduate and graduate degrees from UC Berkeley. While a graduate student, she was the recipient of the Branner Traveling Fellowship which allowed her to spend a year documenting housing designed and built for families in post-disaster communities in various countries. With nearly a decade of experience, Je has worked at renowned architecture firms, most recently SHoP Architects where she spent 4+ years mainly involved in government projects, including the US Embassy Annex in Bangkok, Thailand. Je believes that everyone deserves good design and that the service of an architect should be a benefit to all. Je is the mom of Joao Santiago and step mom to Toni the cat.

Jared Friedman

Walter P Moore

RA

Jared is a licensed architect and design technologist who currently works as a Computational Product Manager in the New York City office at Walter P Moore. Jared has taught coursework related to BIM and Computational Design at The Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University, and has lectured at numerous conferences and universities on the subjects. Much of his work focuses on how data and computational design processes can be applied towards embodied carbon reductions in the built environment.