AI presents vast opportunities and rewards for the construction sector, yet many of us remain slow to jump on board. Inspiring delegates to adopt or innovate in AI was front of mind for Theresa Wells from GHD and Nick Sterling from Innovation Activator (a Callaghan Innovation offshoot venture), when they led us through an exploration of the challenges, opportunities and threats perspectives of AI’s disruptive power at our recent SME Summit in Auckland.
AI adoption is important not only for increasing productivity and commercial value creation, but vital if organisations are to avoid being left behind or displaced by new competitors. Yet a quick survey of attendees found no one had been actively using AI tools for more than two years, and usage was primarily limited to ChatGPT and other large language models.
Theresa and Nick outlined the rapid global evolution of AI, its convergence with other transformative technologies, practical ways it is already manifesting within our industry sector, and the functional roles of the construction sector most likely to be impacted by AI. They also discussed emerging market opportunities and the AI support available to organisations to foster increased productivity and commercial business growth.
It was exciting to hear about the work of the AI Forum New Zealand, a multidisciplinary group of domain experts from industry, government, universities and research organisations, who have been co-designing and delivering a range of ‘AI in Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC)’ initiatives of benefit to SMEs. Theresa and Nick, who are part of the AEC Working Group for the AI Forum New Zealand, shared the action plan for 2025 that includes analysing the current state of AI in the industry, launching a centre of excellence, curating AI policy guidelines, fostering knowledge sharing, integrating AI into construction contracts, and delivering AI adoption and innovation capability development sessions to SME businesses nationwide.
A session highlight was when delegates envisioned AI’s impact on their organisations five years from now imagining how it might transform the areas of people and processes, technology infrastructure, customer landscape, service delivery methods, and working practices.
A stimulating, inspiring and practical session, we’re looking forward to hearing more about the exciting initiatives that emerge from the AEC working group as the action plan roles out. We’ll keep you updated.
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