Building the Future: AI in Design and Construction

Artificial intelligence is moving rapidly from experimentation to expectation across the built environment. For engineers and design teams, the challenge is no longer whether AI will be used, but how to apply it in ways that genuinely improve decision-making, productivity and project outcomes without undermining professional responsibility, data integrity or trust.

This webinar is designed for engineering and AEC professionals in New Zealand who want a clear, practical understanding of how generative AI can be embedded into real design, delivery and information workflows. It focuses on where AI adds reliable value today, where human oversight remains critical, and how organisations can move from isolated experimentation to repeatable, team-wide capability supported by appropriate governance.

Led by Maria Mingallon, structural engineer, AI Lead for APNA at Mott MacDonald and Deputy Chair of AI Forum NZ, the session draws on real-world implementation across design, infrastructure and construction. Maria will share practical use cases, adoption lessons and risk controls to help firms use AI with confidence, align it to business strategy, and build foundations for long-term transformation in the built environment.

Key learning outcomes and major topics:

• The current landscape and future trajectory of technology in the built environment, highlighting the critical shift from generative chat tools to autonomous agentic systems and physical AI.
• Proven practical use cases spanning the entire project lifecycle, ranging from automated feasibility studies and compliance checks to schedule simulation, drone-assisted construction monitoring, and AI-enabled digital twins.
• Effective strategies for moving from isolated tool usage to cohesive team adoption, featuring insights on identifying distinct user personas, designing targeted capability uplift workshops, and building dynamic internal knowledge hubs through gamification.
• A strategic evaluation framework that helps organizations map, assess, and prioritize potential technology applications based on their actionable business value and technical feasibility.
• Essential governance and risk management protocols required to manage system hallucinations, protect intellectual property, secure client data, and uphold professional liability and public safety in high-stakes engineering environments.