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Last week, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) released its annual 2030 By the Numbers report, providing a comprehensive snapshot of how the architecture and engineering industry is progressing towards the goal of carbon neutral buildings by 2030. Encouragingly, the report shows that AIA 2030 signatories made strong progress last year in several critical areas – and while work remains, energy modeling continues to play a central role in delivering meaningful performance improvements.
We’re particularly thrilled to share that IESVE emerged as the number one tool used in reported AIA 2030 projects last year, representing an incredible 806 million gross square feet (GSF) of all whole-building projects reported. This milestone signals a remarkable 120% increase from 2023, and sets us ahead of our closest competitor by more than a factor of two.
These results highlight the industry’s growing trust in IESVE as the go-to solution for robust, early-stage, and comprehensive energy analysis – and we couldn’t be prouder to see our technology driving such meaningful progress.
Source: The American Institute of Architects (September 2025). 2030 by the numbers: The 2024 Summary of the AIA 2030 Commitment
The rapid growth in projects using IESVE is indicative of a deeper shift within the industry. As the stakes around climate, energy, and building performance intensify, design teams are turning to platforms that can handle the complexity of whole-building simulation and provide confidence in decision making – from the earliest design stages, and throughout the building lifecycle.
While lighter-touch tools may have been considered more accessible in the past, IESVE’s ability to deliver deep, detailed insights across all aspects of building performance makes it indispensable to both architectural and engineering teams when tasked with delivering results at the scale and complexity required to deliver on AIA 2030 Commitments. Additionally, teams can submit to AIA 2030 DDx directly from IESVE.
Interestingly, design engineers delivered 42% of the energy modeling carried out on AIA 2030 projects in 2024 – up 13% on the previous year. While architectural teams saw their share decrease by contrast, they still contributed a notable 25%, highlighting the collaborative nature of high-performance design. By offering early stage analysis capabilities, like parametric simulation, through to detailed energy modeling, with tools like ApacheHVAC, IESVE is able to meet the needs of a wide range of professionals. We aim to continue empowering more architects to perform energy modeling, and welcome your feedback to do so!
Source: The American Institute of Architects (September 2025). 2030 by the numbers: The 2024 Summary of the AIA 2030 Commitment
In addition to highlighting energy model usage across design phases, the report identified several other key trends. It measures real outcomes across the industry, and here too, the findings are encouraging. In 2024, the number of net zero projects reported rose by 47% against the previous year, while all-electric projects also continued their steep upward trajectory. Altogether, 1,558 all-electric projects were reported, signalling a 67% increase in just one year.
For IES, these findings resonate closely with our development priorities. Our continually evolving modeling capabilities are designed to support precisely this shift, enabling clients to evaluate a broad range of decarbonization and electrification pathways with accuracy. For example, central plant heat pumps, hourly carbon emissions, on-site renewable energy generation, and battery storage (and much more) can be modeled within IESVE.
Perhaps the clearest takeaway from the 2024 report is the link between energy modeling and performance. Overall, projects reported to AIA 2030 in 2024 achieved a combined 56% predicted Energy Use Intensity (pEUI) reduction - the highest in the program’s history.
However, the results become more interesting when we note the comparison between projects that used an energy model, against those which didn’t. According to the data, projects that incorporated energy modeling achieved an average 60% reduction in predicted energy use intensity (pEUI), compared against just 50% for non-modeled projects. This 10-point performance gap – the largest since 2019 – is compelling evidence that rigorous modeling is key to driving deeper energy savings.
Source: The American Institute of Architects (September 2025). 2030 by the numbers: The 2024 Summary of the AIA 2030 Commitment
To put it simply – projects that model early, and often, achieve better outcomes.
With IESVE responsible for 36% of modeled project area in 2024, we’re proud to say that much of this progress is being driven by firms using our software. As our buildings face increasing demands for efficiency, adaptability, and climate responsiveness, we look forward to continuing to support our users in making their AIA 2030 Commitments a reality.
For further insights, check out the complete AIA 2030 Commitment By the Numbers 2024 report.
If you’re an architect, check out our IESVE for Architects webpage or sign up for one of our free demos.
For further insights, you can also check out our recent Building Performance Modeling for Architects whitepaper at the links below.
Building Performance Modeling for Architects (U.S. Edition)
Building Performance Modelling for Architects (UK Edition)
If you have ideas for how IES can empower architects further to bring energy modeling into their workflow, please share them with us via sales@iesve.com!
