Scottsdale Pilots QPoint for Plan Review as Gilbert and Globe Test ChatAEC for Property Research
From Scottsdale to Gilbert and Globe, Arizona cities of all sizes are turning to Phoenix-based AIAEC to change how they research properties, review development plans and access information that can affect projects long before construction begins.
AIAEC is an artificial intelligence platform built for the architecture, engineering, construction and real estate industries, with two products now on the market. ChatAEC brings zoning information, land-use regulations, building codes and other property-related data together in a single, searchable system, while QPoint supports plan review and permitting compliance. All three cities are now piloting AIAEC’s products: Gilbert and Globe are using ChatAEC, and Scottsdale is using QPoint. The pilots add to the Phoenix company’s growing list of municipal partners as it expands its reach across Arizona and beyond.
“Cities have enormous amounts of information that people need to make decisions about development, but finding the right answers can mean searching through multiple departments, documents and databases,” said Dr. Ali Fakih, founder and CEO of AIAEC. “We’re giving municipalities a faster, more efficient way to approach that process. And when cities as different as Scottsdale and Globe see a use for our platform, that’s encouraging. It tells us we’re addressing a problem that isn’t limited to any particular size or type of community.”
Researching a property can involve checking zoning regulations, reviewing building codes and tracking down other requirements before anyone can determine what the site might allow. ChatAEC brings much of that information together, making it quicker and easier to identify potential restrictions and answer questions about a property’s development possibilities.
Once a project moves toward permitting, QPoint helps review submitted plans against local requirements, identifying issues earlier in the process so fewer problems surface late in review. Through its pilot, Scottsdale is putting QPoint to work on its own permit review processes.
The platform isn’t just for municipalities, either. Developers, architects, engineers, contractors, brokers and lenders can use ChatAEC to research properties, check requirements and make informed decisions about potential projects.
The three Arizona cities also highlight the wide range of municipalities that can use the platform. Scottsdale and Gilbert are among the Phoenix metropolitan area’s more prominent communities. Globe, located about 90 miles east of Phoenix, is a smaller city situated outside of the Valley. Their participation gives AIAEC an opportunity to work with local governments that serve different populations and have varying development needs.
Fakih and his team relied on their extensive experience in engineering, planning and consulting when developing AIAEC’s products, paying particular attention to the questions that often arise when researching properties, preparing plans or considering new development opportunities. They’ve also made changes along the way, introducing new features in response to feedback from users.
Alongside ChatAEC and QPoint, AIAEC is developing Inos, a third product that will manage permit and project workflows, giving the platform tools for each stage of the development process.
For Fakih, the growing number of municipal pilots in Arizona also helps demonstrate what the platform can do as the company expands ChatAEC and QPoint to cities and developers nationwide.
“We’ve spent years developing this technology, and it’s exciting to see more cities taking steps to explore what it can do,” Fakih said. “We see tremendous potential for AIAEC as more cities and developers become familiar with what it can do, and we’re excited to introduce it to more cities and towns in Arizona and across the country.”
For more about AIAEC, visit AIAEC.com.
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