The introduction of AI and automation to the science laboratory workplace promises to advance productivity and optimize the quality of work. But it will also produce disruptions to the discovery process that organizations must prepare for and address. Under current conditions, laboratory automation is on an unsustainable path. The steep increase in energy density associated with automation is of greatest concern. According to some estimates, lab automation will demand 4–10 times the energy of current wet lab space. In addition, the mining of rare metals needed to implement automated systems is having destructive impacts on the environment. If we can’t solve these problems directly, how can we offset them? For this research project, our team set off to better understand the effect automation has on the science workplace and the people who work there, while seeking to identify the required skills and facilities needed to create an effective automated lab environment. In addition, our goal was to outline how we can begin to model approaches that leverage supportive and sustainable building strategies while being mindful of evolving changes in work styles, skill sets, and tools.