TLDR: The ‘ARban Life: Immersive Urban Sketches’ project from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has been awarded the Gold Award at NALI 2025. This pioneering initiative integrates Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Augmented Reality (AR) to transform urban planning education, offering students immersive learning experiences and preparing them for future smart city development. The project, developed by a team from FABU, marks the first known integration of AI and AR into Malaysia’s urban planning syllabus.
JOHOR BAHRU – Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has once again demonstrated its commitment to educational innovation and digital transformation with the ‘ARban Life: Immersive Urban Sketches – Redefining Urban Planning with AI-Driven Augmented Reality’ project, which clinched the prestigious Gold Award at the New Academia Learning Innovation (NALI) 2025 competition. The award ceremony took place on October 8th, 2025, at the Persada Johor International Convention Centre.
The groundbreaking project was developed by a dedicated team from the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying (FABU). The team comprises Dr. Nabila Abdul Ghani, Ts. Gs. Noradila Rusli, Gs. Dr. Nafisa Hosni, and Dr. Ak Mohd Rafiq Ak Matusin. This achievement is particularly notable as it was the team’s inaugural participation in the NALI competition.
ARban Life is designed to revolutionize how urban planning students engage with and interpret the built environment. By seamlessly integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies, the project offers an immersive learning experience that goes beyond traditional methods. This initiative exemplifies research-led teaching, directly embedding knowledge and insights from cutting-edge research into the teaching and learning process. Students gain invaluable first-hand experience with emerging digital tools that are actively shaping the global urban planning landscape.
Within the context of urban planning education in Malaysia, ARban Life stands as a pioneering effort, being the first known attempt to integrate AI and AR technologies into the urban planning syllabus. This forward-thinking approach not only enhances students’ creativity and spatial understanding but also strategically prepares them to meet the future demands of smart city development and digital urbanism.
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NALI, UTM’s flagship platform, celebrates transformative teaching and learning innovations that align with the university’s Education 5.0@UTM framework. The 2025 edition showcased a diverse range of outstanding academic projects, all emphasizing creativity, technology integration, and learner-centered design. The ARban Life project perfectly embodies these principles, reflecting UTM’s ongoing commitment to fostering innovation in pedagogy, promoting interdisciplinary collaboration, and championing student-centered learning. This aligns with the university’s overarching mission to cultivate graduates who are not only technically competent but also forward-thinking leaders in their respective fields.
