In this article, you'll learn:
- How buildings are getting smarter — and why it matters
- How AI and automation cut energy use and carbon emissions
- What’s still holding the smart-building revolution back
We spend about 90% of our lives indoors. This simple fact gives smart building technology a profound impact on our health, comfort, and energy use.
The vision for this technology includes biosensors that detect air threats instantly, personalized controls that adapt to each occupant, and large-scale coordination of buildings acting together as virtual power plants. As demands on the electric grid and data centers increase, smart buildings will actively support energy stability — optimizing performance not just for occupants, but for the entire community. Ultimately, buildings are evolving into responsive, adaptive environments that meet people’s needs while supporting a cleaner, more resilient energy system.
From energy consumer to community partner
Smart buildings can play a critical role in reducing climate change impacts. In 2022, U.S. buildings accounted for roughly one-third of the nation’s emissions. To address this situation, smart buildings can shift their energy use to times when renewable electricity is available, cut overall energy consumption, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
By analyzing real-time operations and responding to grid signals, smart buildings can act like a virtual power plant, reducing or shifting their electricity demand to stabilize the grid and, in some cases, earning compensation from utilities. Smart controls keep occupants comfortable while minimizing waste, turning buildings into active players in a flexible, renewable-friendly energy system.
What it's like to live and work in a smart building
Imagine stepping into a crowded office building on a sweltering summer day. Inside, the air is cool and clean, the lighting adjusts to your preference, and the window shades lower automatically, creating the perfect atmosphere for comfort.
It’s possible. Smart buildings can dramatically improve daily comfort, health, and productivity without input from people. They can track air quality in real time and automatically reduce risks from pollutants, allergens, or even airborne pathogens. Data from sensors is analyzed to maximize occupant comfort and productivity, minimize energy use, and reduce emissions. Intelligent systems can tailor indoor environments, adapting immediately to individual responses such as temperature, humidity, and lighting preferences. Advanced sensors, smart HVAC equipment, and internet-based controls make this possible, especially when systems can plan and adapt based on all the data they collect.
How smart building technology works
Smart building technology, sometimes called intelligent building systems, uses connected sensors, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and artificial intelligence (AI) to manage heating, cooling, lighting, ventilation, air cleaning, and safety systems. These smart buildings learn from data to improve comfort, increase energy efficiency, and lower costs. These systems collect and analyze data from sensors and people’s devices, focusing on improving human health, comfort, and safety while increasing energy and resource efficiency through self-regulation and responsiveness to changing conditions. They rely on real-time communication between systems and can even respond to signals or guidance from the internet.
In the past, “smart” just meant automation—like doors that opened when you stepped on a mat. Today’s sensor and actuator technologies allow intelligent buildings to monitor performance with real-time, spatially precise data.
One example is model predictive control, where a digital model (also called a digital twin) of the building plans next-day strategies based on weather forecasts, occupancy patterns, and energy prices. This has led to substantial utility bill savings, energy savings, reduced carbon emissions, and improved comfort in large commercial office buildings. Some buildings now monitor occupant feedback and environmental data in real time, balancing comfort with efficiency in ways that weren’t possible before.
What's holding the smart building revolution back?
If smart buildings are so beneficial to people, why aren’t they everywhere?
The biggest challenges today are limited sensor coverage, the lack of high-quality data, and the difficulty of scaling intelligent controls across different buildings. While the quality, sensitivity, and affordability of sensors are improving, buildings still have fewer sensors than cars and airplanes, which are built to standardized designs.
In contrast, every building is different, and most buildings lack consistent, transferable data linking design to performance. Because building data comes in so many different formats, like automation systems and CAD files, it’s difficult to bring it all together without running into errors. Scalability depends not only on technology, but it also requires user acceptance and careful study of real-world successes and failures to guide adoption.
James Freihaut is a professor of architectural engineering and IEE faculty member whose research focuses on building mechanical systems. His interest areas include indoor air quality, building science, combined heat and power systems, distributed energy systems, enclosed space air quality issues, and system constraints on air treatment/filtration solutions.
Gregory Pavlak is an associate professor of architectural engineering and IEE faculty member whose research focuses on building mechanical systems. His research interests include smart building systems, building-to-grid integration, and distributed and renewable energy.
