been running crews for a long time and the AI conversation feels like it never quite reaches the boots on the ground level. everything i read is about software engineers or marketers or whatever. i run google ads for a side hustle and even there the AI stuff is real and measurable. but on an actual job site i cant figure out where it fits.
ive seen a few tools pitched for scheduling and safety reporting. one app claimed it could flag hazards from site photos. tried a demo. it flagged a shadow as a tripping hazard. so thats where we are.
the cost argument is what gets me. saw a post here about robots and AI being cheaper than humans eventually and i get the theory but concrete doesnt pour itself and a model cant tell a subcontractor to get his crew back on schedule before the pour sets. thats still a guy with a radio and twenty years of knowing when someones lying to him.
maybe the back office stuff is genuinely useful. estimating, permitting, material costs. i could see that. but the job site pitch feels like someone in a conference room describing construction from a documentary they watched once.
curious if anyone here works in trades or field ops and has actually found something that earns its keep.
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