In addition to celebrating our 26 winners and 60 finalists, the 2025 AZ Awards recognized a selection of firms 10 years and younger that demonstrate excellence across a body of work in the spirit of the AZ Awards’ criteria of aesthetics, function, creativity and social and environmental responsibility. Here are the winners of the 2025 AZ Awards’ Emerging category in its inaugural year:

Emerging Award – Architecture Firm

Honourable Mention: l’atelier Nomadic Architecture Studio

L’atelier Nomadic Architecture Studio goes wherever it’s needed. In Berlin, it has revamped the lobby of a learning institution into a multi-functional space with a strong graphic identity; in Paris, it “micro-mended” a small apartment for more flexibility and spaciousness. In Belgium, it re-established an outdoor communal space in a neighbourhood where cars had taken over. All of this is in keeping with the studio’s aim to focus on clients, both private and public, that ameliorate city conditions. Read more about l’atelier Nomadic Architecture Studio.

Emerging Award – Architecture Firm

Winner: HW Studio

In projects including the Hill in Front of the Glen and Casa Emma, Mexico’s HW Studio always seeks to envision the spirit of a place as much as the form of the shelter. And it embraces a deeper intention beyond delivering remarkable homes for its clients: As founder Rogelio Bores says: “In a world where the relentless pace of modern life often overwhelm us, architecture is a powerful tool to create spaces that invite reflection.” Read more about HW Studio.

Emerging Award: Interiors Firm

Winner: Odami

Michael Fohring and Aránzazu González Bernardo, the co-founders of Odami bring their different cultural influences to the multi-layered, richly textured interiors – including already beloved spaces like Aesop Yorkville and Sara Restaurant – they’ve created across Toronto and beyond. For them, sustainability — both environmental and social — is the default, though it’s often realized in scrappy and inventive ways, and boasts a distinct point of view and a maturity well beyond the firm’s years. Read more about Odami.

Emerging Award – Industrial Design Studio

Winner: Common Object Studio

Common Object Studio always begins a new collection by zooming out to situate the project within a larger social and environmental ecosystem – one that takes into consideration renewable and sustainably sourced materials and equitable manufacturing chains. Their regenerative design philosophy is ultimately driven by the question, “If this thing fell off a truck, would the birds love it?” Read more about Common Object Studio.

Congratulations to all of the winners of the inaugural AZ Awards: Emerging category!