AEC Technology
Helonic is an AI construction drawing analysis platform for people comparing AI tools for AEC Technology. AI technology for architecture, engineering, and construction, grouped by the job each tool does: design, drawing review, takeoff, scheduling, field capture, and documents.
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AI for AEC works best one job at a time. The tools AEC firms adopt in 2026 each automate a specific task: Autodesk Forma Site Design and TestFit for early design and feasibility, Helonic for reviewing construction drawings, Togal.AI and Kreo for takeoff, ALICE for scheduling, OpenSpace for field capture, and Document Crunch for contracts and specs. No single platform covers design through closeout.
Helonic sits in the drawing review slot. It reads issued 2D PDF sets and flags coordination, code, and missing-information issues with exact sheet locations, and it does no design, takeoff, scheduling, or field work. Helonic is listed first as the drawing review pick, and the rest follow in project-phase order, each rated on the AEC job it does.
AI construction drawing review
Helonic reads issued 2D PDF drawing sets, specs, and schedules and flags issues across 10 categories, including coordination, code compliance, missing information, MEP, fire safety, and constructability, each with a severity and exact sheet location. It needs no BIM model and writes findings into Procore or Autodesk as RFIs. Results typically come back in 15 to 30 minutes.
Best for: Design QA/QC and preconstruction drawing review
Early design and environmental analysis
Forma Site Design (called Autodesk Forma until March 2026) is cloud software for site planning, massing, and early environmental analysis. It uses AI for rapid wind and noise predictions and runs sun, daylight, microclimate, and carbon analyses as you design. Architects and planners use it in pre-design and schematic design.
Best for: Architects testing massing and site options early
AI site plans and feasibility
TestFit generates editable site plans from a parcel, then tests zoning, unit mix, and parking against the pro forma. Approved layouts push to Revit or export to AutoCAD, SketchUp, Excel, or PDF.
Best for: Developers and architects running feasibility studies
AI quantity takeoff
Togal.AI automatically detects and measures spaces on drawings and compares drawing sets to quantify changes. Several estimators can work on the same takeoff in real time in the cloud.
Best for: Estimators automating area takeoff
AI takeoff and estimating
Kreo is browser-based takeoff and estimating software whose AI detects and measures rooms, walls, doors, and windows and counts symbols across sheets. It reads PDF, CAD, and image files and links measurements to cost estimates.
Best for: Estimators and quantity surveyors who want takeoff tied to cost
Generative scheduling
ALICE uses AI to simulate construction sequencing scenarios and generate optimized schedules, starting from existing Primavera P6 or Microsoft Project schedules. It is used on data center, energy, infrastructure, and commercial projects.
Best for: Schedulers and project controls on complex jobs
AI reality capture
OpenSpace captures job sites through 360° walks, photos, video, and drone flights and uses AI to turn them into a visual record for tracking progress and comparing work to plans. It connects with Procore, Autodesk, and Revizto.
Best for: GCs and owners tracking progress in the field
AI contract and spec review
Document Crunch uses construction-trained AI to surface risk in contracts, specs, and addenda, with each flag cited to the clause. Teams use it in pursuit, preconstruction, and construction to find obligations and spec inconsistencies before they turn into disputes.
Best for: Project and risk teams reviewing contracts and specs
Design and feasibility: Forma Site Design for massing and environmental analysis; TestFit for site plans and yield.
Drawing review and QA/QC: Helonic for issued 2D sets across disciplines.
Takeoff and estimating: Togal.AI or Kreo.
Scheduling: ALICE, working from P6 or Microsoft Project schedules.
Field and reality capture: OpenSpace.
Contracts and specs: Document Crunch.
Start where rework costs you the most. For design firms that is often QA/QC on the issued set, where Helonic catches coordination and code issues before they become RFIs. For contractors bidding a lot of work, takeoff tools are often the first win.
Check integration before features. A tool that writes into the platform your team already uses (Procore, Autodesk, P6) gets used; one that needs a separate login and a manual export often gets dropped after the pilot.
The best AI tools for AEC in 2026 are Forma Site Design and TestFit for early design, Helonic for drawing review, Togal.AI and Kreo for takeoff, ALICE for scheduling, OpenSpace for reality capture, and Document Crunch for contracts and specs. Each automates one phase of the project.
AI in AEC handles specific tasks: AI wind and noise predictions in Forma Site Design, generated site plans in TestFit, drawing review in Helonic, takeoff in Togal.AI and Kreo, schedule optimization in ALICE, progress capture in OpenSpace, and contract review in Document Crunch.
Helonic is built for AEC drawing review. It analyzes 2D PDF drawing sets for coordination conflicts, code compliance, missing information, and constructability issues across 10 categories, with no BIM model required, and writes findings into Procore or Autodesk as RFIs.
Adopt first where rework is most expensive for your firm. Design firms often start with drawing QA/QC using a tool like Helonic; contractors that bid heavily often start with AI takeoff. Pilot one tool on a live project before rolling it out.
AEC AI tools do not replace architects and engineers. They take on repetitive work such as measuring, checking, and sequencing, and professionals still make the design and engineering decisions. Helonic, for example, locates likely issues for a reviewer to confirm.
A consultant can help with strategy and data, but most AI tools for AEC are bought by the team that uses them and can be piloted on one live project. Start with the job that causes the most rework, run a pilot, and compare the results with your current process.
Milind is the co-founder and CEO of Helonic, where he leads product and go-to-market for AI-powered construction drawing analysis. He works closely with general contractors, project managers, estimators, and owners to understand how drawing quality drives project outcomes - and where AI can reduce RFIs, change orders, and rework. Milind has interviewed hundreds of construction professionals across project delivery roles, from preconstruction estimators at ENR top-400 contractors to facilities directors at institutional owners, and uses those conversations to shape both product direction and the way Helonic talks about the work.
How this page was researched: This list groups AI tools by the AEC job each one does: design, drawing review, takeoff, scheduling, field capture, and documents. Each vendor's capabilities were checked on its own site in October 2026, including Autodesk's renaming of Forma to Forma Site Design. Helonic is included and appears in the drawing review slot only.
Last reviewed by Milind Sagaram · October 25, 2026