// Architect · Design & Technology Specialist · Digital Twin Lead

MICHAL
GRYKO

Chartered Architect (RIBA / ARB) — Design & Technology Specialist at Buro Happold, leading Digital Twins on giga-scale masterplans. Founder of Urban Decoders and the design platform Arki Engine.
Based in the UK. Operates globally.

Buro Happold — Cities & Technologies
Founder, Arki Engine & Urban Decoders
Epic Mega Grant Recipient 2026
Scroll
01 / About

Architecture Meets Technology

Michal Gryko is a British chartered architect and Computational Design & Technology Specialist at Buro Happold, working within the Cities & Technologies division. With over a decade of experience delivering impactful mixed-use developments and large-scale masterplans across the UK and internationally, his work sits at the intersection of architectural design and cutting-edge technology, with a strong focus on design computation and Digital Twins.

At Buro Happold, Michal leads the development of Digital Twins for major masterplanning projects, including Riyadh Expo 2030 and New Murabba, while creating data-driven tools and AI-enabled workflows for world-class architectural projects — redefining stakeholder engagement and design decision-making.

Michal is also the Founder & CEO of Urban Decoders, an technology company developing advanced digital solutions for architecture, urban design and large-scale masterplanning. The company focuses on Digital Twins, artificial intelligence and real-time game-engine technologies to enable data-driven design and decision-making at city and district scale.

Arki Engine, Urban Decoders' flagship immersivedesign platform, is an Unreal-Engine-powered, real-time design environment that combines configurable workflows, advanced geometric and analytical computation, and high-fidelity visualisation to streamline design development and masterplanning delivery.s

RIBA Royal Institute of British Architects — Chartered 2019
ARB Architects Registration Board — Licensed 2019
0
Years Experience
0
Countries Worked
0
sqm Largest Project
0
Scholarships & Grants
02 / Technology Stack

Software & Capabilities

Parametric & BIM
Grasshopper Rhino 3D Rhino.Compute Revit Interoperability
Digital Twins & Real-Time
Unreal Engine Digital Twins IoTs Twinmotion Virtual Reality
</>
Web & Backend
JavaScript HTML / CSS Node.js PostgreSQL SQL Python
AI & Machine Learning
ComfyUI LLM Fine-Tuning LoRA API Integration AI Workflows
GIS & Spatial Data
QGIS FME GIS Pipelines Masterplanning Urban Analysis
Architecture & Design
Masterplanning Advanced Geometrics Urban Design Design Automation
Leading Digital Twin development on giga-scale masterplans (Expo 2030, New Murabba)
Building Arki Engine — a real-time, data-driven architectural design platform (Epic Mega Grant)
AI-enabled workflows: ComfyUI, LLM fine-tuning, LoRA & API integration for AEC
GIS data pipelines with FME & QGIS for masterplanning and urban intelligence
03 / Professional Record

Employment History

Feb 2023 — Present
Founder & CEO
Urban Decoders Manchester, UK
Aug 2023 — Present
Design & Technology Specialist
Buro Happold Engineering London, UK
Feb 2018 — Aug 2023
Architect
Leonard Design Architects London, UK
Oct 2014 — Mar 2015
Designer
Heatherwick Studio London, UK
2010 — 2017
Architectural Assistant
Various International Practices London · Tokyo · Padua · Berlin · Seoul
Apollo Architects & Associates — Tokyo, Japan
9H Studio — Padua, Italy
Ludloff & Ludloff Architects — Berlin, Germany
NEX Architects — London, UK
SAAI Architects — Seoul, South Korea
04 / Academic Formation

Education & Scholarships

2025
Buro Happold AI+Data Science Upskill Programme
London, UK
AI+Data Science Upskill Certification (6 months)
2021 — 2022
IAAC — Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia
Barcelona, Spain
Master in Advanced Computation for Architecture & Design (MaCAD)
IAAC Scholarship
2018 — 2019
The University of Bath
Bath, UK
Part III Architecture (ARB) — Licensed Architect
2019
ARB Prescribed Examination
London, UK
Part II Architecture (ARB)
2015 — 2017
The University of Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan
Master in Architecture
MEXT Japanese Gov. Scholarship
2011 — 2012
Aalto University
Helsinki, Finland
50 Credit Postgraduate Specialisation in Wood & Construction
2008 — 2011
The University of Bath
Bath, UK
BSc Architecture — Part I (ARB)
05 / Ventures & Key Projects

Platforms & Projects

01
Unreal Engine Epic Digital Twin
Arki Engine
ArkiEngine is the flagship product of Urban Decoder's research and Development. It is an Unreal powered, real time design platform that brings architectural and spatial ideas to life through advanced data driven workflows, configurable design systems, and the ability to perform complex geometric and analytical calculations. All wrapped in a high fidelity visualization environment that streamlines material choices, configuration options, and overall design efficiency.
02
Technology Digital Twins AI
Urban Decoders
Urban Decoders, a AEC technology company developing and providing emerging technologies for urban design and architecture, with a particular focus on Digital Twins, artificial intelligence, and game engines, and how these technologies will shape the future of cities. In addition to our proffesional services, regular youtube videos and blog posts, we aim to educate and inform the public about the potential of these technologies and how they can be used to shape the future of cities.

Let's Connect

Open to collaborations in Digital Twins, computational design, AI-driven architecture, real-time visualisation and educational content.