AI has impacted hundreds of industries, and construction is no exception. Tech companies like Document Crunch, AIM, and Togal have developed AI-powered tools to help construction professionals simplify the contract process, design buildings from start to finish, and even operate heavy machinery autonomously.

Top 7 AI tech companies impacting construction

1. Document Crunch 

Most construction projects involve multiple contracts, and these long, complicated documents can pose a significant pain point for everyone involved. In a survey, 60% of people say they take more than a day to review a contract, while 75% said that they were a “pain in the butt to review.” 

Document Crunch has leveraged their AI-driven platform to change that, simplifying the complex language of contracts and making them simple to understand, revise, sign, and comply with. By uploading a contract to Document Crunch, you can reduce review time by 80%, receive an in-depth summary (that’s also easy to understand), and review any relevant issues, omissions, or provisions. 

Its program is designed to increase the efficiency of the contract review process and support project execution by enabling teams to understand and comply with critical contract provisions to mitigate risk.

2. Hypar

Hypar uses AI-powered generative design to make it simple for design teams to create plans and building models. Hypar explains that their software allows you to create intuitively instead of having to start each design from scratch: “Rather than drawing individual walls, you can tell Hypar how your walls should be built and let it generate them in a way that coordinates with your other systems and surfaces useful project data. You can also reuse your wall logic on a similar project.”

The Hypar program also creates an environment perfect for collaboration, allowing multiple users to work together in real-time. This planning application enables users to design, analyze, track metrics, and visualize the finished space all in one program. Users can take elements from one project (like a code-compliant fire sprinkler layout) and apply them to another, saving time and maintaining consistency and accuracy across designs.

3. Togal.AI

Project estimating used to be an onerous task. It can take days—or even weeks—to measure and label everything in an architectural drawing to accurately estimate the materials needed and their cost. Togal.AI created a program that uses AI to automate this process, making it up to 80% faster. The Togal.AI platform eliminates manual counting and measuring, using an AI-image search to quickly find any object, symbol, or tag in the construction plans, from electrical outlets to sprinkler heads, making it easy to provide project totals. 

In an interview with the South Florida Business Journal, Togal.AI founder Patrick Murphy says that the technology is already helping companies save thousands of hours and millions of dollars, “To give an example, estimators at Coastal Construction used Togal.AI to cut their workload by 40%. That saved about 10,000 hours of work, or roughly $1 million in a year’s time.” Togal’s revenue increased by 940% in 2023 as companies eagerly embraced the AI-driven method of improving the project estimating process. 

4. Dozer

Dozer creates AI-powered cameras that can be attached to almost any construction equipment, providing a 360-degree view of your surroundings—including the cabin and bucket. With its innovative AI platform, Dozer provides a live video feed that can be accessed remotely, and its AI-powered software documents collisions, near misses, and human proximity and calculates each machine’s risk level. Dozer compiles all this data into a handy dashboard, allowing you to keep tabs on the job site no matter where you are. You also receive real-time safety alerts about accidents or close calls, so you’re always kept up to speed instead of getting an incident report after the fact.  

To install the Dozer system, you just need a 12V power source. With its included wire management system, sensor clips, and camera mounts, the camera can be retrofitted to virtually any machine. 

The Dozer platform is available for desktops and as an app for iPhones and Android devices.

5. Augmenta

According to tech company Augmenta, architects, engineers, and construction (AEC) professionals spend up to 20% of their time and up to 6% of a building’s total cost simply fixing mistakes made during the critical design and planning process. These errors lead to the waste of up to 30% of new building materials. 

Augmenta wants to eliminate costly human error by handing the design reins to AI. By automating sustainable building design, companies can quickly reduce the time, cost, and waste involved in most construction projects. With Augmenta, users can explore several variations of the same design simultaneously to find the best option. In electrical applications, users can specify device and panel locations, no-go zones, blockouts, and more, then use Augmenta’s Design Rules feature to specify support methods, spacing, and clearances. Best of all, your generated designs will easily export to Revit, so all your tech tools can play nicely together to create error-free designs.

6. AlwaysAI

AlwaysAI Smart Construction uses cameras to identify risks, safety issues, and potential liabilities on construction sites to make projects safer. Their system easily connects to a worksite’s existing camera systems to monitor site access points like entry gates, provide real-time information about site occupancy numbers, identify any employees who aren’t wearing the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), and even track the project’s progress—including idle machine time. 

You can access this data through the SmartAI software, which displays it in real-time. This means you can manage multiple projects quickly and efficiently without driving from site to site for updates. AlwaysAI has made a name for itself by creating innovative solutions for construction and several other industries, such as restaurants, retail, and mining. 

7. AIM

If you ever wished your heavy machinery could operate, you might not have to wait much longer. Based in Washington state, tech company AIM has created an AI-driven program that can operate heavy construction equipment, including skid steers, bulldozers, and excavators. AIM’s autonomous system can be added to older machinery and installed in a day. By enabling AIM, heavy equipment becomes fully autonomous and can operate day and night in any weather, giving users a choice of three modes: fully autonomous, operating via remote control, or being driven manually with an operator. 

Every AIM-enabled machine is insured for autonomous operation by a global insurance company, so you don’t need to worry about liability issues with your newly futuristic, self-operating equipment. 

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