JULY 2025CONSTRUCTIONTECHREVIEW.COM19Case Study II ­ AI-enabled progress tracking shows potentialFor several years, my company has used 360 cameras and specialized software to record walks the project team uses to review and document progress. Over the past three years, solutions have added AI-based progress notifications. Over the past 18 months, the project team at one of our vertical construction projects piloted a competitor to our solution that incorporates this progress notification. The team determined that the new solution was very effective in notifying the project team of subcontractor progress for some scopes of work, such as drywall, but not others, like mechanical. In addition, the solution cost was greater than the hourly cost of a project engineer or junior superintendent walking the site at the same frequency. As the costs decline and the models improve, solutions like the one piloted will deliver value, but that value is still emerging.Case study three ­ AI-created meeting transcription value still requires measurementOur company's AI innovator community of practice has fully embraced AI-created transcripts for meetings with internal teams, subcontractors, owners, and architects/designers. The users of the solution all highlight the value of the solution, as letting the AI take notes 1) reduces the time to process meeting notes ­ as some meetings required more than an hour of work to document, which has been reduced to a few minutes, 2) frees the note taker to participate in the meeting actively, 3) allows team members not to attend if they were only participating as an "informed" stakeholder, and 4) builds greater accountability by ensuring that action items are documented, communicated, and available for planning the next session. The team has not settled on a specific, measurable outcome. Still, it continues to document how this time is utilized for other purposes, such as a former note-taker conducting an additional safety inspection or quality check. Risks remainWhile AI solutions are beginning to demonstrate value, challenges and risks remain. Companies must start their AI journey with well-defined IT security and information governance policies to act as guardrails. In addition, many software vendors are adding AI to their offerings without a strong connection to the core value of their products. Distinguishing real AI value from "AI washing" takes time, effort, and serious consideration. The most effective way to judge is whether AI will deliver defined and demonstrated value. While AI solutions are beginning to demonstrate value, challenges and risks remain. Companies must start their AI journey with well-defined IT security and information governance policies to act as guardrails
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