Combining AI with Real-Time Engines

Created with Midjourney in the Exploration phase

AI can support every stage of the design process, largely because the term itself encompasses a broad range of capabilities. Today, there are specialized AI tools for research, code analysis, visualization, animation, programming, and many other use cases. The real advantage, however, comes from having a team that understands these tools well enough to leverage them effectively. Since AI is still new to most designers, everyone is learning and adapting with each project.

In the context of visualization and animation, the role of AI can be understood in several phases:

Ideation and Exploration
 This is where AI excels. It thrives in open-ended creative stages where flexibility is high. Tools like Midjourney are particularly strong at atmospheric and conceptual imagery often producing visuals with an artistic quality that feels remarkably human. For rapid exploration, mood creation, and early concept direction, AI offers unmatched speed and variety.

Rendering
 Here is where expectations tend to diverge. Designers and clients often expect AI to produce final-quality renderings, imagining that the model will not only render the view but also enhance it in line with a mental image they already have. This creates a misunderstanding about what AI is designed to do. While AI can generate compelling illustrations, they should still be considered preliminary. Some level of post-production is almost always required.

AI has undoubtedly improved productivity, but there is a fine line between optimization and over-reliance. The area where AI truly accelerates workflows is mood refinement, stylization, and post-production especially when combined with real-time rendering engines.

Real-time renderers generate images using structured data from their own environment (materials, depth, masks, lighting). Because this information comes directly from the rendering domain, AI can interpret it far more accurately than when an external image is simply uploaded. The result is higher fidelity, more controlled enhancements, and a smoother workflow.

This integration allows designers to adjust atmosphere, stylize visuals, and achieve more realistic results without spending unnecessary hours modifying the 3D model or reworking technical settings.