MIT Researcher Alexander Htet Kyaw: Blending Design and Computer Science for Innovative Solutions

Alexander Htet Kyaw, an MIT MAD Fellow, is redefining the intersection of design and computer science by creatively merging technologies like artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and robotics. Pursuing dual master’s degrees in architectural studies in computation and electrical engineering and computer science, Kyaw is developing innovative human-AI workflows with the potential to revolutionize our interaction with the built environment.

One of Kyaw’s notable innovations is Curator AI. This project won first prize at the MIT AI Conference’s AI Build: Generative Voice AI Solutions hackathon. Developed in collaboration with MIT graduate students Richa Gupta, Bradley Bunch, Nidhish Sagar, and Michael Won, Curator AI is designed to streamline online furniture shopping. It uses AR to measure room dimensions and AI to provide context-aware product recommendations based on user prompts and the room’s visual characteristics.

“Shoppers can choose from the suggested options, visualize products in AR, and use natural language to ask for modifications to the search, making the furniture selection process more intuitive, efficient, and personalized,” Kyaw explains. Curator AI addresses the challenge many face when furnishing a room, offering smart, contextual recommendations.

Kyaw’s work also includes Estimate, a product created during the MIT Sloan Product Tech Conference’s hackathon. Estimate leverages AR and object-recognition AI to provide detailed cost estimates for renovation projects. It generates images of rooms post-renovation and creates invoices, aiding small businesses like a Cambridge painting company.

In April, Kyaw is scheduled to deliver a TedX talk at Cornell University, where he will showcase Curator AI, Estimate, and other projects that integrate AI, AR, and robotics in design and construction. These projects include Unlog, a towering art sculpture on Cornell’s campus built using AR and gesture recognition to map building component dimensions directly from whole logs.

Unlog exemplifies Kyaw’s commitment to sustainable building practices by using materials in their raw form. His paper, “Gestural Recognition for Feedback-Based Mixed Reality Fabrication a Case Study of the UnLog Tower,” details this process.

Kyaw has also developed a system integrating physics simulation, gesture recognition, and AR to design active bending structures with bamboo poles. This work was presented at the 41st Education and Research in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe.

Furthering his commitment to social impact, Kyaw founded BendShelters, an MITdesignX-supported startup focused on creating prefabricated, modular bamboo shelters for displaced persons in Myanmar. His efforts have been recognized by MIT Sandbox, PKG Social Innovation Challenge, and the Amazon Robotics’ Prize for Social Good.

Currently, Kyaw is collaborating with Professor Neil Gershenfeld and PhD student Miana Smith at MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms to develop a system using speech recognition, 3D generative AI, and robotic arms for accessible, on-demand, and sustainable object construction. Kyaw’s diverse background in architecture and computer science from Cornell University, coupled with the support of an SJA Fellowship from the Steve Jobs Archive, enables him to explore the convergence of technology and the arts.

“I enjoy exploring different kinds of technologies to design and make things,” Kyaw says. “Being part of MAD has made me think about how all my work connects, and helped clarify my intentions. My research vision is to design and develop systems and products that enable natural interactions between humans, machines, and the world around us.”