We’re just about halfway through 2026, and most construction teams are no longer operating off the CPM schedule alone. Mid-year is when teams go from comparing what was initially planned to chasing the clock, diligently executing and evaluating what’s actually working across projects and jobsites. This is when reality sets in… the plans you made in 2025 may look a tad bit different in 2026. Those 100% construction drawings have a few more markups, redlines and changes that remind you to always verify that you’re working off the latest and greatest contract documents.
The midpoint of the year is the perfect time to review expectations vs reality. This is when we can objectively say what the true construction trends are.
To help you with that, Autodesk and Miller Davis Company came together to host a webinar on construction trends for 2026 and how teams are responding. Obviously, there’s a lot of hype out there – and it can be distracting. So for this webinar, we set out to identify what’s “really real” across the industry while filtering out the noise.
You’ll walk away with:
Watch the webinar on demand or review the key takeaways below.
If you ask industry experts what the latest trends are, you’ll likely get the following answers:
These are all important things shaping the industry, but if we really think about it, these top five trends aren’t standalone initiatives. They don’t maximize their value in isolation, which is why companies that are seeing the most success treat them as different parts of the same system.
As Ariel Castillo, Director of Innovation at Miller-Davis Company, says, “If you zoom out, these are not necessarily just five trends. This is more like a connected ecosystem that is basically pushing the companies forward so that we can continue outperforming how we do on a daily basis.”
Another thing to mention is the order in which these trends are tackled matters a great deal.
They must be treated as layers that build on one another to produce better outcomes across the business. You can’t just dive into digital twins, prefab, or AI without a solid foundation from your CDE and project management workflows.
As Ariel explains, “If your data is centralized and structured, that’s how you can start scaling.”
A common data environment is foundational to modern construction workflows because it creates a centralized, reliable source of project information that teams can use to make decisions.
“We need to move away from data capture to intelligent execution or getting things done in a really good way. The common data environment is your hub to capture and centralize that information,” remarks Ariel.
For him, the rise of the CDE is one of the biggest shifts the industry has made over the last decade. Not too long ago, many construction companies were still relying on traditional servers, disconnected systems, and email chains to manage project information. Drawings, RFIs, and field updates weren’t always accessible in real time, which caused failed inspections, reactive coordination and risky decision-making.
“We have seen a big, big shift in the last decade where companies are feeling more comfortable and understanding that a CDE is critical so that they can centralize information.”
Once that data is centralized, the next step is collaborating and connecting workflows across the business. Project management, field management, accounting, safety, and preconstruction need to work together. Remaining in silos will continue to limit the business from scaling and reaching its full potential.
As he puts it later in the discussion: “Technology is not going to transform the way you do construction, but connected workflows will do that.”
Autodesk's Design and Make Report: Spotlight on Construction found that the industry's top digital tool is… (drumroll) spreadsheets.
They’re not the most high-tech, but clearly have a lot of staying power.
Ariel attributes this to legacy processes, saying that the popularity of spreadsheets isn’t because people love them, but because people haven’t realized there are better options.
“I don't know if I would call it love. I think it's more of a long-term relationship that we haven't figured out how to leave yet.”
He continues, “It's not necessarily that construction prefers the spreadsheet. It's just telling me that spreadsheets are still the fallback when systems don't fully deliver. It's how people are used to getting things done. We've been using them for years. They're flexible, they're familiar, they're fast, but the problem is they create silos, version control issues, and a lot of manual work behind the scenes, especially with those formulas that only one person knows how they were created.”
Even though spreadsheets remain the most popular tool, AI tools are still gaining traction very quickly.
Ariel points to the fact that AI chatbots like ChatGPT already sit at 22% adoption, despite barely existing in construction workflows a few years ago.
“These are tools we’ve been using for decades,” Ariel explains, referencing CRMs, time tracking systems, asset management software, AR/VR, and bid management tools. “AI didn’t exist in this space a few years ago, and it’s already competing with those legacy tools. And that’s a signal.”
Speaking of AI, one of the biggest misconceptions in construction right now is that AI alone will transform the industry.
But it’s important to note that AI delivers value only after digital workflows are in place. Remember those layers we mentioned earlier? AI sits on top of them, not before.
As Ariel explains, “AI doesn’t work in isolation. It’s feeding from that data, from those systems.”
That’s why companies rushing into AI without structured data or connected workflows often struggle to see meaningful results. If project information is scattered across emails, spreadsheets, and disconnected systems, AI simply amplifies the chaos.
“And if you don’t have a lot of data or if that data is messy, then your AI is going to be as well,” Ariel says.
The companies seeing the most traction with AI are the ones that already have a strong digital foundation in place. They’ve centralized information through a CDE, connected workflows across departments, and digitized day-to-day project execution.
Once that happens, AI becomes much more useful.
“This is when you can start thinking about executing and optimizing your tasks based on that data,” Ariel explains.
Digital maturity isn’t a neat, linear progression. It happens in phases across different teams and workflows, and most companies operate at multiple stages of digital maturity at once. One department can be highly mature while another lags behind.
Ariel explains it really well: “The reality is that you need to look at your business and understand that you can be at multiple stages at the same time. You can have a department that is in stage three of the digital maturity index, and then you can have another one that could be in stage one.”
He points to a common example: project management teams may already have a CDE in place, while safety teams still rely on manual forms and disconnected processes. That unevenness is normal, but you shouldn’t ignore it.
As Ariel puts it, “Your lowest stage is basically what’s going to define where you are.”
The key is establishing a baseline across departments, then steadily improving over time. And that process takes longer than many teams expect. Ariel notes that Miller-Davis began its journey in 2021 and continues to evolve today.
For Ariel, digital transformation starts by listening closely to the people doing the work every day. “Take your time to understand what they do on a daily basis and what areas they struggle the most,” he says.
That could mean double data entry, chasing spreadsheets, manually tracking RFIs, or hunting through email chains for PDFs and approvals.
That process helps teams identify what he calls “mosquito bites” versus “shark bites.” Minor annoyances may slow people down, but shark bites are the issues actively hurting the business and need immediate attention.
Another important point: digital maturity is not just about buying more technology. “There are companies where their tech stack is huge, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re using it effectively,” Ariel explains.
Digital transformation fails if partners aren’t brought along on the journey. We need to remember that construction is a team sport, with owners, designers, GCs, and trade partners working together. Technology adoption stalls when the benefits aren’t clear to everyone.
As Ariel points out, construction projects involve a huge number of moving parts and people. Even a small job can involve owners, architects, general contractors, and dozens of subcontractors, all relying on information from one another to keep the job moving forward.
That’s why disconnected workflows and teams create even more problems.
“There’s no point in me as a CM having a super digital ecosystem if I cannot count on the other parties interacting with me on the project to actually leverage it,” Ariel explains.
He gives the example of digital pay apps. If trade partners still submit documents via email and PDFs, teams end up reverting to manual work like chasing files or scanning paperwork. That creates what Ariel calls a “digital bottleneck.”
The companies making the most progress are focused on empowering their teams with streamlined workflows — not forcing old methods simply because “that’s how we’ve always done it.”
“You want to get them on board, and you don’t want to force them,” Ariel says. “You want to show them what the benefit is for them as well.”
That means helping teams work more efficiently through connected workflows and a single source of truth.
The biggest takeaway for construction teams in 2026 is that digital transformation doesn’t start with chasing the latest technology trend. It starts with building a strong foundation.
Before teams can fully benefit from AI, automation, digital twins, or advanced workflows, they need centralized, connected project data and processes that work across departments and project partners.
Companies investing in connected workflows today are positioning themselves to adapt more effectively as market conditions, labor shortages, and customer expectations become increasingly challenging.
More importantly, they’re creating healthier, more proactive environments where teams, leaders, and project partners can work together more effectively every day.
Construction teams are under pressure to modernize, but as this conversation shows, the path forward is less about chasing shiny new tools and more about building connected, practical workflows that truly help people do their jobs better.
The webinar dives deeper into how leading teams are approaching AI, digital maturity, collaboration, and operational change in the real world. These trends are influencing decisions today — not sometime in the distant future.
And at the end of the day, the companies that lead won’t just advance their own digital maturity, but they’ll help elevate the entire construction ecosystem around them.
To hear the full conversation, real-world examples, and audience Q&A, watch the webinar on demand.
