Why do so many AI projects fail in construction?

Bassem Hamdy · CEO, briq · November 3, 2026

Most construction AI projects fail because companies bolt small tools onto old systems. Here is what to do instead, from Briq's Bassem Hamdy.

Most construction AI projects fail because they are too small. Companies try one narrow tool on top of the systems they already run, see a modest result, and decide AI is not ready. Bassem Hamdy calls this "AI tourism." The projects that work treat AI as a change to how the company runs, which means rethinking the platform the work happens on.

What is AI tourism?

AI tourism is the habit of trying AI in small, disconnected ways. Someone uses ChatGPT for an email, builds a quick tool, gets an okay result, and goes back to work as usual. AI stays something next to the job instead of part of it. In Bassem's view, this is the main reason so many construction AI projects stall. The experiments are too small to change anything that shows up on the P&L.

Why are so many contractors disillusioned with AI right now?

Construction is seeing a flood of AI ads for the first time, and most of them promise to fix one micro problem. Bassem says he now spends more of his day explaining the market than selling to it. Many contractors have reached the stage where AI feels like hype because the tools they tried only helped one person with one task. That is a reasonable reaction to small tools. It is the wrong conclusion about the technology.

What does "rewiring" a construction company mean?

Bassem describes this as a replatforming moment, on the scale of the move from software installed off a CD to software that runs on the web. Your email server, accounting system, PM system, and CRM were each built around a database that people type into. An AI-first company starts from the work itself and lets AI do a large share of it. That is a bigger change than adding a feature, and it is why thinking small fails.

What should contractors expect AI to deliver?

Bassem frames the goal in three plain outcomes: more profit, less fee erosion, and controlled overhead. If an AI project does not move one of those, it is a demo. He also separates people into two groups: those who think they know what AI will do, and those who have seen the outcomes for themselves. Right now, he says, most of the industry is in the first group.

Is AI going to affect construction differently than other industries?

Yes. Ellis Talton points out that AI will affect every industry, but construction is uniquely hard. Projects are one-off, data is scattered across many systems, and a lot of the work happens outside an office. That is exactly why bolt-on tools struggle here and why the gains from a full rethink are larger.

Frequently asked questions

What is the biggest mistake contractors make with AI?

Starting too small. One tool for one task rarely changes profit, fee, or overhead, so the project gets written off.

Do contractors need to replace their systems to get value from AI?

Bassem's position is that AI layered onto 20-year-old systems will keep underdelivering, and that the real gains come from moving work onto an AI-first platform over time.

How should a construction CEO measure an AI project?

By profit, fee erosion, and overhead. If none of the three moves, the project has not paid for itself.

Watch the full conversation in Episode 1 of Future of Work: Rewired.