It is difficult to predict precisely how quickly and in what form AI will transform our professional environments. One thing is certain, however: workspaces as we know them today will be profoundly reshaped.
For those who think this change will take time, I highly recommend reading the book ‘Ne faites plus d’études’ (Don’t Study Anymore), published in autumn 2025 by professors Laurent Alexandre and Olivier Babeau. It is an informative, edifying and, in some respects, disturbing read, as the collective lack of preparation seems so obvious.
Conventional workspaces are likely to become obsolete very quickly. Areas dedicated solely to human activity are set to shrink considerably, replaced by new models dictated by the needs and capabilities of AI.
Humans will undoubtedly not be completely replaced but relegated to a secondary—or even incidental—role, which will have direct consequences on space requirements, space typologies, attendance patterns, and the roles and activities of everyone. And we are only talking about layout here, without even mentioning the psychological impacts, which are even more profound…
This is not about being alarmist or controversial but about anticipating and planning for the future of workspaces.
All companies, regardless of their size, would be well advised to ask themselves the right questions now: implementing a comprehensive strategy in this area takes on average between 12 and 18 months before the first concrete results are seen.
The commercial property market is set to undergo a major transformation – a veritable revolution – which many players still seem to be unaware of or underestimate. It will not disappear, but it will reinvent itself.
The typology of spaces will have to evolve. We will need to imagine modular, hybrid and adaptable spaces, combining, for example, areas dedicated to “AI servers” and others reserved for staff. These spaces could be shared between several companies with very different activities, which will have repercussions on training, governance and legal compliance.
Those who believe that certain service sector professions are protected are mistaken. AI has already established itself in surgery, medicine, administration, notarial and legal practices, and finance.
The secondary sector may be spared a little longer, but many factories are already beginning to change jobs are being transformed, augmented or redefined thanks to AI. As Laurent Alexandre and Olivier Babeau point out, the current revolution is comparable to the discovery of fire: a fundamental upheaval that made it possible to heat, cook, build, create… But this time, everything is happening at breakneck speed: whereas it took millennia to master fire, AI is progressing at a dizzying pace every month.
Should we fear this change? Not necessarily. But we must anticipate it and learn to do things differently, as this is undoubtedly the best defence against what could well become a new Frankenstein: a creature surpassing its creator.
Our businesses and political leaders would therefore be well advised to prepare for this silent but radical revolution.
Courage, clarity… and happy reading!