Innovation Expo: Buildots
In this episode of STO Building Group’s Innovation Expo series, host Rob Leon sits down with Jessica Herrala, Regional Vice President at Buildots, to explore how AI-powered progress tracking is transforming the way construction teams monitor performance, forecast delays, and make data-driven decisions. From visual AI and object recognition to portfolio-level insights and early risk detection, the conversation highlights how Buildots is helping project teams reduce administrative burden, improve collaboration with trades, and bring greater predictability to complex construction portfolios.
HOST
Rob Leon
Chief Innovation OfficerSTO Building Group
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GUEST
Jessica Herrala
Regional Vice PresidentBuildots
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Here are the episode highlights:
· [00:16] What Buildots Does — AI-Powered Progress Tracking Jessica Herrala explains Buildots as an AI-driven progress tracking and delay forecasting platform that replaces manual, error-prone jobsite reporting with data-backed visibility.
· [01:17] Why Construction Is Ready for Change Despite decades of effort; progress tracking remains largely manual. Buildots address the long-standing industry gap by automating what teams have historically tracked by hand.
· [01:51] How the AI Actually Works Buildots uses advanced visual AI and object recognition—trained over seven years—to identify and track construction elements down to individual components, colors, and installation status.
· [02:45] Speed of Innovation in a Slow Industry Jessica shares a real-world example where Buildots deployed drone-based underground utility tracking in just two weeks—highlighting how quickly AI can move in construction.
· [03:40] Proof Points & Customer Impact The real breakthrough comes when teams trust the data. Early detection of delays has helped customers save millions by identifying issues long before they appear on schedules.
· [04:47] Why Automated Progress Tracking Is “Table Stakes” Progress tracking alone isn’t the end goal—it’s the foundation. Buildots overlay planned vs. actual work using 360° imagery and models every element of the building.
· [05:37] From Progress Data to Delay Forecasting AI-generated production rates enable Buildots to forecast delays before they become visible—showing “smoke before fire” and enabling proactive decision-making.
· [06:37] Identifying What’s Really Causing Delays When trades say something is holding them up, Buildots provides clarity through automated line-of-balance reports, float analysis, and work-ready area tracking.
· [07:53] Cultural Shift on the Jobsite The platform is moving from a compliance tool to a collaboration tool—bring owners, CMs, and trades together around shared, trusted data.
· [09:52] Making Data-Driven Decisions—Even When It’s Uncomfortable Teams are learning to rely on data over gut instinct, fundamentally changing how projects are run day-to-day.
· [11:05] Portfolio-Level Visibility for Leadership Buildots’ portfolio dashboard gives leadership instant insight into critical path delays, mitigation strategies, and performance across all projects.
· [12:39] What Comes Next — Cost, Manpower & Enterprise Insights The platform is evolving toward deeper enterprise value, with the ability to layer cost, manpower, and benchmarking across portfolios.
· [13:13] Expanding the Lifecycle: Before & After Construction Future capabilities include schedule validation using global benchmarks and asset management through digital twins for owners.
· [14:03] Cash Flow, Billing Confidence & Client Trust Accurate progress data supports fair billing, reduces disputes, improves cash flow, and builds client confidence in payment decisions.
· [15:21] Supporting Smarter Client Decisions Buildots helps teams quantify risk when late changes arise—using real data to support difficult but necessary conversations with clients.
· [16:05] The Power of Simple Jobsite Data Collection A weekly walk with a 360° camera unlocks powerful insights—without adding administrative burden to field teams.
· [16:42] Strengthening the STOBG–Buildots Partnership Jessica emphasizes the importance of continued collaboration and leadership engagement to drive long-term cultural change.
Key Takeaways:
· Buildots replaces manual progress tracking with AI-powered, data-driven visibility.
· Visual AI enables early delay detection—often saving millions by acting before issues escalate.
· Automated progress tracking is just the starting point; forecasting and decision intelligence are the real value.
· Shared, trusted data drives collaboration between owners, CMs, and trades.
· Portfolio dashboards give leadership real-time insight into risk, mitigation, and performance.
· Accurate progress data improves cash flow, billing confidence, and client trust.
· The partnership positions STO Building Group to lead industry-wide cultural and technological change.