Uruguay will participate for the second consecutive year in the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design in San Diego

Uruguay will once again be represented at the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design, the leading architecture event in the United States organized by the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The 2026 edition will be held in San Diego and will once again feature a business delegation coordinated by Uruguay XXI.

This will be the country’s second consecutive participation in this international event, consolidating a sustained strategy to position Uruguay’s architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) ecosystem in the U.S. market and other global markets. Through this initiative, Uruguay seeks to strengthen the international visibility of its companies, promote export capabilities, and generate new business opportunities for the sector.

The delegation will consist of eight Uruguayan companies: CSI Global, Dream X, Gea Consultores Ambientales, Gibert & Rodríguez, Lagarsoft, Montevideo Architectural Group, Sitio Pezzani, and Shape Studio. This group reflects the diversity and sophistication of the national sector, ranging from architecture and visualization services to technological solutions, BIM, sustainability, and the development of specialized software for the AEC industry.

Learn about the participating companies here

As part of the preparation for the conference, the companies participated in a workshop coordinated by Uruguay XXI and led by American architect Eli Gould and Uruguayan architect Josefina Pallas. The session was aimed at strengthening positioning strategies, networking, and the commercial benefits of participating in AIA26.

The Uruguayan delegation will seek to highlight the capabilities of a sector that combines over a century of academic and professional excellence with a contemporary vision focused on innovation, technology, and sustainability.

Uruguay has a recognized track record and a growing international presence. Among its key strengths is a well-established export capacity, with companies operating in highly demanding markets and the United States as one of their primary destinations. Added to this is the availability of agile, specialized teams operating in a time zone aligned with North American teams, facilitating collaborative processes and real-time workflows.

Advanced technological integration, incorporating BIM methodologies and augmented reality tools, is also part of the profile Uruguay will bring to AIA26. Several of the participating companies develop projects with high levels of technological integration and international standards, in line with the sector’s new global demands.

Another key focus will be sustainability. In recent years, Uruguay has built a growing portfolio of LEED Platinum and EDGE-certified projects, positioning it as a regional leader in sustainable architecture.

Participation in AIA26 is part of the internationalization strategy promoted by Uruguay XXI to strengthen the global visibility of Uruguayan talent and generate new business opportunities for companies in the AEC sector.

Uruguayans on the official agenda

In this edition, representatives of the delegation will also participate in the conference’s official agenda as speakers in various activities related to architecture and sustainability.

The director of Montevideo Architectural Group and AIA Country Representative for Uruguay, Vicente Bonilla, will participate in the panel “The Edge Condition in Global Architecture Practice,” focused on how global architectural practice is being redefined through geographical, cultural, and technological perspectives.

Meanwhile, Lagarsoft Project Manager Agustina Aboy will lead the session “Sustainability on Tap: Brewing, Design & Adaptive Reuse,” which focuses on experiences with the adaptive reuse of historic and industrial buildings in San Diego. The session will examine how such interventions help reduce environmental impact while simultaneously boosting the local economy.