Digital Builder

Recorded live at Greenbuild in Los Angeles, this episode of Digital Builder features a wide-ranging conversation with Ben Stapleton, Executive Director of USGBC California, on what it takes to rebuild communities after catastrophic wildfires — and how climate resilience, education, and coordination can shape better outcomes long term.

Using the 2025 Southern California wildfires as a starting point, host Eric Thomas and Ben explore the realities of recovery, from trauma and displacement to supply chain constraints, insurance challenges, and the opportunity to rebuild more sustainable, all-electric, and fire-resilient homes at scale. The discussion expands beyond wildfire to examine how climate change is reshaping communities — and what builders, owners, and local leaders can do now to prepare for what’s ahead.

On this episode, we discuss:

1. Why rebuilding after large-scale natural disasters often takes 5 to 10 years, even in regions with strong resources
2. How education, coordination, and shared standards can dramatically improve recovery outcomes
3. The role of home hardening, landscape design, and material choices in reducing wildfire risk
4. Where resilience and sustainability overlap — and why rebuilding is an opportunity to address both
5. The challenges homeowners and contractors face, including supply chain limits, labor shortages, and rising costs
6. Why insurance, electrification, and contractor education are critical — and where gaps remain
7. How community-level tools like shared marketplaces and digital twins can support collaboration and cost reduction
8. Why people, not technology alone, remain the most important tool in building climate resilience

This episode is especially relevant for professionals working in construction, sustainability, planning, and housing — as well as anyone navigating rebuilding, preparedness, or long-term climate risk in their own community.

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas from Autodesk.

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Michael Baim, Vice President of Venue Infrastructure at the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and Allison Scott, Director of Sustainability Growth and Engagement at Autodesk, to explore what it takes to deliver the LA28 Games with fewer than 1,000 days to go. As Los Angeles prepares to host the Olympic Games for a third time, and one of the most ambitious Olympic and Paralympic Games in modern history, Michael and Allison's conversation highlights the scale, complexity, and collaboration behind LA28’s no-new-permanent venues plan, their ambitious commitment to build LA28’s footprint by adapting existing or building temporary infrastructure.

Michael and Allison discuss how Autodesk’s Design and Make platform, including Autodesk Construction Cloud will help teams coordinate logistics, data, and planning across an unprecedented program. They also touch on balancing historic venue preservation with modern upgrades, the long-term community legacy LA28 aims to create, and opportunities for contractors, designers, and builders to get involved in bringing the Olympic and Paralympic Games to life.

Get involved here today: https://www.rampla.org/s/

Recorded live at the Autodesk Technology Center in Boston, this episode of Digital Builder explores how human‑centered construction can support resilience, recovery, and long‑term community impact.

Host Eric Thomas is joined by Joshua Dobbs, New England Patriots quarterback and aerospace engineer, and Gerard Georges, Director of Architecture at Build Health International, for a cross‑disciplinary conversation on empathy, leadership, and design.

In this episode, we discuss:

1. What human‑centered design looks like in practice—and why putting people first leads to stronger, more resilient communities
2. How collaboration and stakeholder engagement shape healthcare and community projects in high‑stakes environments
3. Lessons from professional sports—preparation, composure, and teamwork—that translate directly to construction and design teams
4. How technologies like VR and data‑driven design help teams visualize outcomes, align earlier, and make better decisions
5. Why empathy and adaptability are essential leadership skills on the job site, in crisis response, and beyond

Dobbs shares how his experience as a quarterback—operating under pressure, leading diverse teams, and preparing for critical moments—parallels the demands faced by AEC professionals working on complex projects. Georges adds a global healthcare perspective, highlighting how thoughtful design can help communities heal and thrive over time.

This episode was recorded during the launch of Autodesk’s Make It Heal film series and the 2026 Design & Make It Real program.

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas talks with Power Design CTO Raghu Kutty and Autodesk’s Sid Haksar about how one of the industry’s most innovative specialty contractors is reshaping construction through intentional structure, unified workflows, and forward‑looking tech adoption.

Key topics include:

1. Power Design’s unified “one office, one culture” model
2. Taking control of the supply chain (in‑house switchgear, trucking, warehousing)
3. Field‑first, mobile‑first technology and connected data workflows
4. Preparing for AI through clean data, platformization, and change‑ready culture
5. How deliberate training + standards enable scale and rapid tech transformation

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.

Research and development teams often work behind the scenes, but they play a major role in shaping where construction is headed next. In this episode, Eric Thomas sits down with Fope Bademosi, Circular Economy and Construction Researcher, and Lorenzo Villaggi, Principal Research Scientist at Autodesk, to explore how Autodesk Research is approaching the future of AI, sustainability, and material reuse.

Fope and Lorenzo walk through their latest work on assessing existing buildings, predicting what’s inside walls using multimodal data, and designing low‑carbon assemblies with the help of AI agents. They also explain how early insight into materials, carbon impacts, and code constraints can shift project culture toward circularity.

Topics we cover:

1. How Autodesk Research operates 5–10 years ahead of industry needs
2. The impact of material reuse on carbon reduction and waste
3. What circularity and the circular economy mean in a construction context
4. A prototype that predicts the materials and systems hidden behind walls
5. How multimodal data improves AI’s accuracy on existing buildings
6. Using AI agents to design low‑carbon assemblies that merge reclaimed and new materials
7. The role of building codes, performance requirements, and safety considerations
8. Where the Autodesk Research team is headed next with testing, customer collaborations, and expanded assembly types

The built environment contributes roughly 40% of global carbon emissions, and most construction waste still ends up in landfills. Fope and Lorenzo share how emerging technologies—combined with new workflows and industry collaboration—can help shift project teams toward reuse, lower‑carbon design, and more informed decision‑making from the start.

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas from Autodesk.

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Dr. Sarah Buchner, founder and CEO of Trunk Tools, for a grounded, no-nonsense conversation about how construction teams can actually start using AI today. Recorded live at Autodesk University, the discussion moves past the high-level hype and into the real workflows where AI is already driving change—from automating white‑collar tasks to reducing rework and helping teams navigate labor shortages.

Drawing from her background as a carpenter, project leader, data scientist, and founder, Sarah breaks down what adoption looks like in the field, how to overcome resistance, and why embracing AI early is quickly becoming a competitive advantage.

We discuss:

• Why AI adoption struggles—and what actually helps teams get over the hump
• The biggest areas of ROI for AI today, especially in white‑collar construction workflows
• How autonomous AI agents differ from tools like ChatGPT
• The role of executives, legal, and IT in successful AI rollout
• Why vertical, construction‑trained AI models matter
• How AI can reduce rework, ease labor shortages, and let builders focus on building

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Jeevan Kalanithi and Michael Fleischman, co-founders of OpenSpace, to explore how reality capture technology is transforming construction. Recorded live at Autodesk University in Nashville, the conversation traces the journey from early laser scanning to today’s AI-powered visual intelligence platforms—and what that means for builders on the ground.

From reducing disputes and project risk to unlocking new possibilities with spatial AI, Jeevan and Michael share insights on how technology is giving teams “superpowers” rather than replacing experience. They also look ahead to the future of AI agents and robotics in construction.

We discuss:

• The “three chapters” of reality capture—and why visual intelligence is the next frontier
• How reality capture builds trust, speeds decisions, and lowers risk
• Why today’s tech feels more Iron Man than Terminator
• The role of AI and spatial computing in shaping the job site
• What AI agents could mean for productivity and the labor shortage

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Autodesk's Chief Marketing Officer Dara Treseder to unpack the latest insights from the annual State of Design & Make Report. Recorded live at Autodesk University in Nashville, the conversation explores what the data says about digital maturity across the Design and Make industries—and how construction teams can turn those findings into action.

From the industry’s ambition to go fully cloud-based to practical strategies for closing the skills gap, Dara shares how leaders are building resilient, efficient organizations that deliver faster, on budget, and with stronger stakeholder trust.

Download the Spotlight on Construction here: https://construction.autodesk.com/go/design-and-make-construction-spotlight-report

Download the full report here: https://www.autodesk.com/design-make/research/state-of-design-and-make-2025

We discuss:

• Key findings from the 2025 State of Design & Make Report
• The cloud adoption gap—and why it’s a massive opportunity for construction
• How improved data access and collaboration drive accuracy and efficiency
• Practical strategies for attracting, training, and upskilling talent
• Where sustainability gains are showing up across project lifecycles

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.

Design-build is gaining momentum across the construction industry, and for good reason: it delivers projects faster, fosters collaboration, and reduces risk. But what really sets design-build apart from traditional delivery methods—and how does technology amplify its benefits?

In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Brian Skripac, Director of Virtual Design and Construction at the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA), to unpack the fundamentals of design-build, bust common myths, and explore how digital tools are transforming project delivery. Recorded live at Autodesk University 2025 in Nashville, this conversation dives into why design-build is more than a contract—it’s a cultural shift toward transparency, trust, and innovation.

We discuss:

• What makes design-build different from design-bid-build (DBB) and construction manager at risk (CMAR)
• Common misconceptions about design-build—and the truth behind them
• How technology and shared models break down silos and improve coordination
• Why early collaboration leads to better outcomes and fewer surprises
• Practical advice for teams looking to adopt design-build successfully

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.

The construction industry faces a growing talent shortage—but innovative partnerships are paving the way forward. In this episode of Digital Builder, host Eric Thomas sits down with Nick Otto, Chief Technology Officer at Kimley-Horn, and Beth Ihnatolya, Program Director of Civil Engineering and Geomatics Technology at Wake Technical Community College, to explore how collaboration between firms, educators, and technology providers is creating a job-ready pipeline.

Recorded live at Autodesk University 2025 in Nashville, this conversation dives into why these partnerships matter, how they’re reshaping education, and what it takes to prepare the next generation of construction professionals.

We discuss:

• Why firms, colleges, and tech providers must work together to close the skills gap
• How internships and apprenticeships go beyond “coffee runs” to deliver real-world experience
• The role of advisory boards in aligning curriculum with industry needs
• How Autodesk, Kimley-Horn, and Wake Tech are redesigning courses with hands-on tools
• Practical steps for attracting talent and changing construction’s perception

Digital Builder is hosted by Eric Thomas of Autodesk.