This paper analyses the use of an intelligent building envelope as an instrument to manage the variable and sometimes conflictive requirements posed by daylighting in non-domestic buildings. While proper architectural design is a vital precondition for facing these challenges, in a real-time environment it needs to be supported and enhanced by the performance of the building envelope as an environmentally selective filter. The manner in which the building envelope is able to handle the collection, admission and distribution of daylight indoors determines its successfulness in creating an appealing indoor luminous environment with an efficient use of daylight resources. First a short introduction is given on what the authors believe to be the central characteristic of intelligent building envelopes: adaptiveness to and interaction with the environment, with particular focus on the building occupant. This adaptiveness is then evaluated for its ability to manage the complex set of requirements that arise from the use of daylight in non-domestic buildings with a desirable outcome. The analysis combines and compares a selection of secondary literature sources and built examples in their concrete attempts to create solutions to daylighting challenges. The paper is based on the research results of a Ph.D. to be completed in 2005 at NTNU, Trondheim, Norway.