Dr. Yun Yi

Biography

Yun Kyu Yi is an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, focusing on environmental architecture and sustainable technologies. His expertise includes computational building modeling, building performance evaluation, and studying indoor occupant behavior. Yi is the co-founder of the Responsive Architecture Lab (RAL), which is dedicated to developing new technologies that improve the built environment by integrating architectural design with advanced engineering and computer science. He earned his Ph.D. and master’s degrees in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania, along with earlier degrees in Architectural Engineering from Yonsei University and Hong-Ik University in South Korea. Prior to joining UIUC, he taught at the University of Pennsylvania and worked at its T.C. Chan Center for Building Simulation and Energy Studies. Yi has authored 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, with his research spanning sustainable design, simulation, and emerging technologies in architecture. His work has been widely recognized, including a cover article in the Building Simulation journal. He leads impactful research applying machine learning to building performance evaluation and climate-responsive architecture, continuing to direct the Responsive Architecture Lab with support from faculty awards and external grants.

Research Interests