Global Design Perspectives 2026

• Hardwired for flexibility: designing for the unknown
  Returning to the fundamentals of flexible design and focusing on adaptability in the face of continued uncertainty, evolving technology, and the need to futureproof real estate.
• AI advances value of human connection
  In an era of rapid technology advancement and change, a counter trend is emerging focused on designing for human connection and leveraging with neuro-design principles.
• Evolving personalization of experiences
  AI, digital experiences, generational expectations and individual preferences are driving expectations for personalization of experience in buildings and places.
• From activities to outcomes: designing the connected workplace
  Complex organizational structures and agile business needs are shifting the focus to designing high-performance environments as connected systems, that support business outcomes over single activities.

In an era of uncertainty, rapid technological advancement, and focus on experiential value, thoughtful design has become central to value creation across real estate portfolios. Organizations are pursuing high-performance spaces that advance business objectives while maintaining efficiency amid cost pressures. At the same time, technological innovation is reshaping space requirements and design possibilities, and our understanding of meaningful experiences is deepening. 2026 represents a pivotal moment— a convergence of cutting-edge innovation with sophisticated insights into human behavior and environmental response.

In 2026, real estate leaders will be focusing on designing for the unknown and futureproofing assets for long-term flexibility. Uncertainty and change have become prevailing characteristics in real estate, as hybrid work models, AI integration and operational requirements can now shift within months rather than years, signaling the need to return to the fundamentals of flexible design.

Organizations across all sectors, from offices and retail to hotels and healthcare, increasingly need to balance agility in business planning and operational flexibility with long-term ambitions of boosting productivity and reducing costs, and the design of their spaces is central to this. Business planning agility was rated a key C-suite objective by 88% of organizations globally in a recent JLL survey, rising to 89% for those with predominantly office portfolios and 90% for those with retail portfolios. Flexible working patterns also continue to evolve, not just from hybrid working but now also from shifting skills and job requirements and emerging AI work practices, with 85% of organizations identifying flexible work patterns as a key C-suite priority. 

From workplaces to neighborhoods, social interaction, fostering community and building social capital will be paramount in attracting people back to physical spaces in 2025. After years of fluctuating office attendance, JLL Research shows the top reasons for coming into the office for both employers and employees are around social connection and office culture. More broadly across the urban environment, positive consumer scores for Quality-of-Life were found to be significantly connected to social factors – sense of belonging, feeling able to settle down in a place, and access to amenities.

In 2025, design will focus on how real estate can support fundamental social needs and the social wellbeing of people. Thoughtfully designed social spaces that can be reconfigured for various activities will refocus on the foundations of social psychology and the importance of shared experiences in workplaces and neighborhoods.

In the workplace, organizations are shifting their focus from attendance-based metrics to outcomes like innovation and talent attraction, recognizing the intrinsic value of physical spaces in building social capital. Increased collaboration between designers and psychologists, social scientists and other specialists will focus on spaces that are designed for different group dynamics, visual connectivity that fosters sense of community, and understanding the spectrum of spaces for different interactions.

There will be an increased emphasis on shared and transition spaces that nurture community and facilitate shared experiences, while group dining spaces, gamification and technology are bringing more innovative design solutions to social spaces in retail and hospitality.

As artificial intelligence (AI) transforms work processes, skillsets and operations across offices, retail and leisure, a powerful counter trend is emerging: the deliberate cultivation of 'analog spaces' and tactile design that prioritizes human connection, inspiration and experience.

In an increasingly digital world, genuine place-based connection has never been more valuable, as people crave connections to places, community and local identity. JLL research shows that 65% of people want the places they visit to provide 'unique and distinct experiences' and 62% want 'connection to the local area or culture'. Although technological integration in spaces is valued, people still seek human connection and community when choosing places to visit or shop.

In response, design concepts will focus on communal spaces that foster community and interactions – entrance foyers with visual language and high environmental comfort to create inviting atmospheres and communal spaces that encourage conversation and interaction.

An emerging typology of technology-free spaces will become integral to holistic design strategies that enhance experience and performance within wider technology-enabled buildings. As people seek relief from 24-hour technology exposure, 61% of consumers globally report wanting digital detox spaces in the places they visit. Incorporating ‘no-‘ or ‘low-technology’ spaces into schemes can benefit workforces increasingly at risk from burnout, while appealing to consumers seeking more human connection.

Workplaces, retail centers and entertainment hubs will turn to materials and finishes for tactile design, embracing texture, acoustics and lighting to enhance sensory experiences and improve cognitive performance. Acoustic systems have become increasingly sophisticated, with perforated panels integrated throughout spaces to simultaneously serve aesthetic and environmental comfort functions while supporting improved concentration and performance in workplaces.

Ensuring that designs go beyond material aesthetics will be critical, with greater focus on spaces that provide both positive sensory experiences and high-performance environments as organizations concentrate on increasing productivity. The emerging application of neuroscience in design will allow organizations to focus investment on specific features and finishes with proven physiological and psychological benefits, such as stress responses or circadian rhythm, specific to their organizational aims and real estate strategy.

In particular, customizable and circadian lighting systems, as well as biophilic features such as plants or natural colors and patterns, will be combined with higher acoustic and environmental specification while organizations will also pay attention to neuro-design principles that create inclusive sensory experiences, enhance human performance and create flourishing environments.

Designs that combine detailed consideration of spatial patterns, environmental comfort and material finishes to create spaces that inspire and comfort while elevating human performance will be differentiators in 2026 and beyond.

Retrofitting and conversion of existing buildings continues to gain momentum in 2025, as global trends of aging building stock, supply shortages across sectors and in-demand locations, and increased ESG requirements are increasing the risk of a ‘do-nothing’ approach for developers, landlords and occupiers.

In 2025 this continued momentum will accelerate the role of design in unlocking holistic value from investment in sustainability features and building refurbishments. Effective strategies for existing buildings will go beyond improved energy efficiency and functional upgrades, taking a more holistic approach to retrofit design that can support talent and visitor attraction, brand strategy, community impact and improved health and wellbeing.

While JLL Research shows that 60% of employers plan to increase investment in building refurbishments in the next five years and increase investment in sustainability performance of real estate, sustainability demands are driven by both corporate commitments and changing employee expectations. Younger generations choose to work and live in environments that demonstrate sustainability credentials, with 72% of Gen Z and Millennials reporting they ‘always choose the most environmentally friendly option’ as consumers, compared to 55% of those aged 60 years and over.

Sustainable design will become more integrated with organizations branding, and visually demonstrating eco-credentials will be a design focus in 2025. We’ll see increased use of natural and recycled material palettes to create more tangible links between an organizational sustainability journey and visual identity, an important factor in talent attraction.

At an urban scale, sustainability-focused mixed-use regeneration will be key for ‘destination places’ centered around green spaces, community access and ‘science-led design’ that demonstrates sustainability and circular principles and showcases sustainable credentials.

From predictive building analytics to data-driven design tools, AI is emerging as both a driver and enabler of change across design, while the use of data, specialist analytics and predictive tools for ‘science-led design’ has been gaining traction in recent years.

The convergence of AI and ‘science-led design’ brings an exciting opportunity to design fields, not just for efficiency but for increased data integration in creative processes. This will also widen collaboration opportunities between designers and fields such as psychology, bio-medical and robotics.

‘Science-led design’ approaches bring research and data into creative processes to enhance decision-making with greater information about how a building or place might perform, or to assess the impact it will have on people or the planet.

A key driver behind this is the exponential growth of AI companies that are generating data and tools which could be leveraged in design. With global venture capital investment in Generative AI increasing from $2.3 billion in 2020 to $22.3 billion in 2023 and green building technology investment growing from $1.1 billion to $5.4 billion in the same period, we can expect AI to accelerate its influence on design in 2025.

While ‘science-led design’ has been limited by the ability to bring complex datasets from the built environment together or integrate research and data from other sectors, AI is now advancing and accelerating this capacity in areas such as evolving work patterns, health impacts and neuroscience.

For example, the emerging field of neuro-architecture brings research from neuroscience and psychology to the design of buildings, providing a greater understanding of the success factors of productive and healthy spaces. JLL research has already shown how the design of high-performance workplaces could be enhanced by insights from neuroscience or cognitive psychology on optimum working environments, with further opportunities emerging with AI tools.

AI will change our expectations of the built environment, and future design teams may include computer programmers or AI technologists who can facilitate deeper collaboration between disciplines - such as biomedical or psychology fields - and building engineers and designers.

As the world of work continues to evolve in 2026, organizations are recognizing that high-performance environments require more than traditional desks and meeting rooms. With increasingly complex organizational structures and agile business needs, successful workplaces must function as connected systems that balance workspace, amenities, and connective spaces to support holistic workplace outcomes.

With JLL research showing that 92% of corporations globally see workforce productivity as a key business objective over the next three years, and 63% of employees report feeling more productive in the office, organizations are examining what performance truly means for large, complex entities with networks of teams and interdependent objectives. This scrutiny extends beyond office spaces to encompass retail, manufacturing facilities, and healthcare environments, where workspace design plays an equally critical role. A healthy and productive workforce depends on broader factors including social capital across teams, organizational culture, community building, and innovation capacity.

A recent JLL employee survey of over 12,000 employees reveals a significant mismatch between satisfaction and importance for holistic workplace outcomes. While environments supporting productivity and scheduled meetings rank highest in current workplace satisfaction, other crucial aspects show concerning gaps. Elements like ‘being able to recharge’ or ‘feel inspired and creative’ are most closely correlated with people's ideal work environments yet rank lower in actual satisfaction scores. The importance of holistic workspace environments applies equally to office workers and frontline workers, with non-office based employees reporting that their ideal workplaces should also focus on environments supporting wellbeing and creating inspiration.

Different organizational needs drive specific design strategies. Offices with high innovation requirements focus on connected flexible meeting spaces that adapt for innovation sprints or workshops, paired with recharge zones featuring distinct acoustic treatment to counterbalance high-performance areas. Meanwhile, organizations with strong social sustainability mandates might configure offices as destinations for both employees and communities, creating community-accessible spaces. And workplaces with diverse office and frontline functions across manufacturing, retail, or healthcare will consider how spaces foster a sense of belonging among disparate workforces through common areas like town halls or social gathering spaces.

In 2026, there will also be greater focus on how teams and organizational structures support business outcomes, and the role of social-spatial design strategies in supporting collective performance. Organizations will focus on how connected spaces work for teams, recognizing that small groups are critical for agile working and quick decision-making. Greater emphasis is being placed on designing "in-between spaces" – and capturing ROI for non-traditional workspaces, placing greater emphasis on broader metrics that capture team performance, social capital, and holistic experience factors. 

The four global design perspectives—flexibility, human connection, personalization, and connected outcomes—represent interconnected opportunities to create spaces that deliver measurable business value while enhancing user experience across diverse real estate portfolios.

• Align capital planning with futureproofing needs: Invest in adaptive infrastructure to support business needs over multiple time horizons by examining CAPEX and ROI cycles. Organizations focused on futureproofing will align design requirements with investment structures.
• Design people-first spaces for performance: As human performance evolves, creativity, innovation and collaboration remain essential ingredients of human capital. Prioritize people-centered design to ensure productive and profitable spaces.
• Measure holistic performance outcomes: Develop metrics beyond traditional utilization rates to capture team performance, social capital, and experience quality, ensuring space investments align with broader organizational objectives rather than individual activities.