Most contractors can get AI tools in an afternoon. Getting those tools to change how an estimate gets built or how a change order gets documented takes a different kind of work.
Sometime in the last year, most contracting firms crossed a line without really noticing. AI stopped being something to look into and became something already in the building. A few estimators use ChatGPT on their own. The project management platform added an AI assistant in an update. Someone in the office has a Copilot license, and a vendor or two has pitched a takeoff tool with AI in the name.
Access is no longer the hurdle. Ask an owner what has actually changed in the business, though, and the answer tends to be thin. Estimators still rebuild scope from PDFs. PMs still chase submittals across inboxes. Field notes still reach the office days after they would have been useful.
That gap between having AI and getting something from it is where most of the industry sits. A 2025 global survey of construction professionals by RICS found that close to half of organizations had not implemented AI in any form, and only a small fraction were using it across multiple processes. The barriers respondents named most often were a lack of skilled people, trouble integrating with existing systems, and poor data quality. A shortage of available products didn’t make the list.
Why it stalls
The pattern is consistent enough to predict. A firm starts with a tool instead of a problem, so nobody can say afterward whether it worked. Or it points AI at a process that was never consistent to begin with, and the output is as messy as the input. Estimators who each build bids their own way will get four different kinds of results from the same assistant.
The office and field split makes it harder. A PM at a desk, a superintendent in a trailer, and a foreman on a lift have different devices, different information needs, and very different patience for a new login. A single rollout rarely fits all three.
Then there’s training, which usually happens once. Someone runs a session, people nod, and six weeks later usage has drifted back to the three people who were already curious.
Start with a workflow that already hurts
The best first project is rarely the most impressive one. It’s work that happens often, costs real hours, has an obvious way to measure improvement, and carries low risk because a person reviews the output before it goes anywhere.
For specialty contractors, that often looks like turning spec sections into a scope summary before bid review, drafting RFI responses and keeping submittal logs current, condensing daily reports into something a PM can read in five minutes, or assembling qualification packages from past project information.
Pick one. Run it with AI alongside the current method for a few weeks. Track the time it takes, what gets caught, what gets missed, and whether the team keeps using it when nobody is watching. That last measure tells you more than any demo.
The part that doesn’t show up in the budget
Implementation also means deciding things most firms haven’t discussed out loud. What information can go into which tools? Pricing, customer data, and employee records shouldn’t flow into a public chatbot because nobody said otherwise. Who reviews AI output before it reaches a GC or an owner? And who owns the workflow once it’s live, so it improves instead of fading?
This is worth settling now. Most firms are building 2027 budgets this fall, and AI tends to show up as a subscription line with no owner, no defined use case, and no measure attached. A line item like that will look exactly the same next September.
An operating decision, not a purchase
Contractors don’t need to become technology companies. They need to get good at spotting repetitive, high-value work, getting the right information in front of the right tool, and building habits around what works. The firms that approach AI this way will protect margin and add capacity without adding overhead. The ones treating it as a software purchase will keep paying for licenses that don’t change much.
That practical middle ground is where Dynaimix works with contractors: finding the first use case worth pursuing, shaping the workflow around how the team already operates, and training people in the context of their actual jobs. If AI is going into your 2027 plan, it’s worth knowing what it’s supposed to do before the budget is final.
People Say
We recently had Chris Carr present to our members on behalf of Dynaimix, and it was an overwhelming success. We had a full classroom, and the engagement throughout the session was outstanding. Many attendees who initially felt intimidated by AI left feeling empowered and confident in how they can begin applying it in their work.
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Brubacher engaged Chris , founder of Dynaimix, in a two-day mind-stretching exploration of current AI capabilities, future direction, and most importantly he outlined the likely impacts to our business. He introduced us to a variety of AI tools to explore using to increase efficiency. Some participants immediately identified ways to save hours per week while others began using AI-enabled tools to offset areas in which they lack skills. Chris is high-energy, kept our attention, and has been attentive in follow-up.
We had the pleasure of having Chris Carr present at our annual planning meeting at Oliver Fire Protection & Security, which is a critical event for setting the direction of our year. Our goal was to give our strategic leadership team a stronger understanding of artificial intelligence and how it will impact our business. Chris delivered his state of AI presentation and completely blew our team away. His depth of knowledge, paired with practical, real-world examples, made the topic both clear and compelling.
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I had the opportunity to bring Chris Carr to the NECA Districts 6 and 9 Summer Conferences on the North Shore of Hawaii, where he came in locked and loaded and delivered two impactful sessions—one for each district. What I appreciate most about Chris and the Dynaimix team is his genuine passion for what he presents and his constant focus on applying AI in practical, meaningful ways for the electrical contracting industry.
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I’ve had the opportunity to see Chris’s State of AI presentation multiple times, and each experience reinforced his strong grasp of AI—where it’s going, how quickly the landscape is changing, and what that means for electrical contractors. What sets Chris apart is his ability to take an incredibly complex topic and make it both approachable and immediately relevant to our industry.
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At the 2025 WICA Annual Convention in beautiful Lake Tahoe, Chris Carr presented on the State of AI for our Insulation Contractor and Associate members. He emphasized the importance of AI literacy, the role of AI governance through an AI council, and how to effectively pair AI with custom code to drive real business impact. Chris has a gift for explaining complex topics in a way everyone can understand, and the session was engaging and highly relevant. Our members found it captivating, the feedback was excellent, and I would highly recommend Chris and the Dynaimix team.
We were extremely pleased with the Program that Dynaimix provided for our Members. From the feedback I received from our Members, it was easy to understand and provided practical grass roots education on understanding how AI could increase time saving skills and knowledge about subject matter. The process of booking the presentation was seamless and the communication with dynAimix leading up to the event was outstanding. We look forward to hosting another presentation with them in the near future.
We had the privilege of having Chris Carr present to our leadership team after first seeing him speak at a peer group event. That experience led us to bring him in for a two-day Intro to AI training where he covered the foundational elements of artificial intelligence. Prior to the training, Chris met with us to understand our business, which allowed him to tailor the content specifically to our needs. What impressed us most was his ability to explain complex concepts in a clear and easy-to-understand way.
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Partnering with Dynaimix AI has been a tremendous step forward for our organization. Their customized, in-person training reached more than 300 of our employees and consistently exceeded expectations. The sessions were engaging, practical, and highly relevant, and many team members shared that they learned far more about AI than they anticipated.
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Chris presented at our Annual Summer Membership Meeting for the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), Northeastern Illinois Chapter, and our members were absolutely blown away. The response was so strong that his team followed up with a two-day Intro to AI training for our members, hosted at our location in Illinois. The training was led by Todd Smith, and it was incredibly powerful, highly digestible, and easy to understand.
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Chris Carr
Mark Oestreicher
Todd Smith
Ashetun Jones
Dan Callahan
Erin Larkin
Dynaimix AI Public Speaking Schedule
One of the missions of Dynaimix AI is to educate businesses, industries, and professionals about the transformative impact of the coming wave of artificial intelligence. We aim to share insights into how AI will shape the future of work and provide practical lessons, techniques, and tactics to enhance AI literacy.
Below is our public speaking schedule. Please check back regularly, as new dates and events are added each week.