BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Suffolk Technologies, the venture capital affiliate of Suffolk that funds the next generation of companies solving built environment challenges, has launched the application process for its fifth annual BOOST program. This intensive eight-week program is designed to ignite growth and equip pioneering built world startups with the right tools to transform the industry. As inflation, supply chain challenges, a national labor shortage, sustainability regulations, and economic uncertainty continue to present significant challenges to the AECO (architecture, engineering, construction, and operations) industry, emerging startups are poised to make a large impact by developing solutions that address these problems. Throughout the intense eight-week program, the startups selected will be launched into the built environment with direct access to jobsites and testbeds around the world, unparalleled operational knowledge, and an influential network of industry leaders and academics. This year, Suffolk Technologies has expanded its network of Operating Partners, a group of other general contractors, building owners and operators, real estate services companies, material providers and trade partners who will engage with this year’s cohort throughout the program. “In the fifth year of BOOST, we are excited to harness the powerful ecosystem that has emerged around this program over the past few years,” said Parker Mundt, Vice President of Platform for Suffolk Technologies

Chicago-based design and construction consultant VIAtechnik has been developing Precogs, which can review project documents and models and then offer predictions of a range of problems, from overall constructability to site suitability, working from a LLM trained on previous project data.