Stefan Al is the author of Dwelling on Earth: The Past and Future of the Places We Call Home (W. W. Norton, April 2026), a Next Big Idea Club Must-Read that traces the story of human habitation from prehistoric pit-shelters to 3D-printed homes and lunar habitat prototypes. His previous book, Supertall, was reviewed by the New York Times.

A TED Resident and TED-Ed educator whose animated videos have reached millions of viewers, Stefan translates complex ideas about housing, climate, and urban design into vivid, story-driven presentations for corporate, policy, and general-interest audiences. He has given talks at the United Nations, the Smithsonian, and the American Institute of Architects, and provides expert commentary for CNN, NPR, CBS, and the Science Channel.

Stefan is a licensed architect with a PhD from UC Berkeley and serves as Director of the Urban Planning Program at Hunter College in New York City.

For speaking inquiries, contact info@stefanal.com

Keynote Topics

The Future of Home: What 500,000 Years of Housing Tells Us About What Comes Next

We are building the equivalent of a new New York City every month. Over the coming decades, the world needs more housing than at any point in human history—yet we are building with methods and materials that the planet cannot sustain. This talk traces the full arc of human habitation to reveal the patterns, breakthroughs, and mistakes that have brought us to this moment—and what it will take to build differently.

From Mud Bricks to Moon Dust: The Surprising Technology of How We Build

In 1974, a chemist imagined a machine that could manufacture solid objects from liquid using a laser beam. Fifty years later, a robotic arm in Texas has printed homes for the formerly homeless, while NASA partners are designing habitats for the Moon using the same technology. This talk connects the oldest building technology on Earth to the newest, revealing a surprising loop: the most advanced construction methods are circling back to principles our ancestors understood intuitively.

Building for a Hotter Planet: Cities, Climate, and the Architecture of Resilience

Forty percent of global carbon emissions come from the built environment. The way we build is one of the largest—and most overlooked—drivers of the climate crisis. But it is also one of the most actionable levers for change. From car-free neighborhoods in Arizona to floating houses in the Netherlands, this talk shows how architecture and urban planning are already responding to a warming world—and why some of the best solutions are thousands of years old.

Vertical Futures: How the World’s Tallest Buildings Are Reshaping Our Cities

The world has more skyscrapers than ever—but height alone doesn’t create great cities. Drawing on his book Supertall and years of living and researching in Hong Kong, Stefan explores what makes vertical urbanism work and what makes it fail: the psychology of density, the engineering of extreme height, and the design choices that determine whether a tower becomes a thriving community or a “vertical filing box.”

Custom topics and presentations tailored to your audience available upon request. Past presentations have also covered autonomous vehicles and urban planning, the architecture of Las Vegas, the evolution of retail spaces, and urban design in Asia.

TED & TED Ed

Stefan was selected as a TED Resident and has presented talks on the future of cities and buildings at TED and TEDx events. As an educator for TED-Ed, he helped create animated educational videos that have collectively reached millions of viewers, translating complex urban design and engineering concepts for global audiences.

Featured Videos

The future of parking spaces

Why cities need trees

Could we build a wooden skyscraper?

Will there ever be a mile-high skyscraper?

Why isn't the Netherlands underwater?

Reinventing cities with timber

Media Expertise

Stefan regularly provides expert commentary on urbanism and architecture for major media outlets including CNN, NPR, CBS, and the Science Channel.

Featured Appearances

• CNN's "The Next Frontier" - Sustainable skyscrapers

• Science Channel - Engineering challenges of supertalls (helicopter segment)
  
  View All Media Coverage