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RICS Sets AI Rules: Construction's Revolutionary March Deadline

From RICS's groundbreaking AI standards to autonomous agents building themselves, this week reshapes how we think about artificial intelligence in project delivery.

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Yoshi Soornack & James Garner
September 16, 2025

Proudly sponsored by ConstructAI, brought to you by Weston Analytics.

Hello Project AI enthusiasts,

Welcome back to Project Flux, where we decode the AI developments that matter most to project delivery professionals. This week brings big news: RICS has set the global standard for AI use, autonomous agents are revolutionising software development, and governments worldwide are betting billions on AI transformation. Let's dive into what this means for your projects.

In This Edition

Flux check-in

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has launched a landmark global standard for responsible AI use, setting the framework for how construction professionals must approach artificial intelligence by March 2026. Read the full breakdown →

What Does This Mean for Me?

This isn't just guidance—it's the new rulebook. Project delivery professionals must now demonstrate AI competency, implement governance frameworks, and ensure ethical AI deployment. Non-compliance could mean exclusion from major projects.

Key Themes

  • AI governance by March 2026

  • Professional competency requirements

  • Ethical AI deployment standards

  • Global construction industry alignment

Down the Rabbit Hole

Deloitte has established a dedicated AI Infrastructure Centre of Excellence, recognising that AI ambitions often hit infrastructure brick walls before delivering value. Read the full breakdown →

What Does This Mean for Me?

For project leaders, this signals that AI infrastructure is now a strategic priority. Without proper foundations, your AI initiatives will fail. This centre provides a blueprint for enterprise-scale AI deployment.

Key Themes

  • AI infrastructure as strategic priority

  • Enterprise-scale deployment frameworks

  • Avoiding common AI implementation pitfalls

  • Professional services evolution

Down the Rabbit Hole

Replit has unleashed Agent 3, an autonomous AI coding assistant that's 10x more effective than previous models. It can architect, build, debug, test, and deploy full-stack applications with minimal human intervention, running autonomously for up to 200 minutes. Read the full breakdown →

What Does This Mean for Me?

This changes everything for project delivery. Imagine AI agents that can build your project management tools, automate workflows, and create custom solutions whilst you sleep. The question isn't if this will impact your work—it's how quickly you'll adapt.

Key Themes

  • Autonomous software development

  • AI agents creating other AI agents

  • 200-minute autonomous operation cycles

  • Full-stack application deployment

Down the Rabbit Hole

OpenAI and Microsoft have signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding for a revised partnership worth over $100 billion, allowing OpenAI to restructure into a for-profit company whilst maintaining nonprofit oversight. Read the full breakdown →

What Does This Mean for Me?

This restructuring signals OpenAI's preparation for an IPO and reduced Microsoft dependency. For enterprise users, expect more diverse AI offerings, competitive pricing, and accelerated innovation as OpenAI gains operational flexibility.

Key Themes

  • OpenAI IPO preparation underway

  • Reduced Microsoft dependency

  • Enterprise AI market competition

  • Nonprofit oversight maintained

Down the Rabbit Hole

Albania has made history by appointing an AI bot as a minister to tackle corruption, marking the first time artificial intelligence has been given governmental authority. Read the full breakdown →

What Does This Mean for Me?

This precedent will ripple globally. If AI can govern, it can certainly manage projects, oversee compliance, and make strategic decisions. Government adoption legitimises AI in leadership roles and accelerates enterprise acceptance.

Key Themes

  • AI in governmental leadership roles

  • Corruption detection and prevention

  • Global precedent for AI authority

  • Enterprise leadership implications

Down the Rabbit Hole

The pulse check

Tips of the week

Wispr Flow offers voice-activated text expansion for workplace productivity, allowing users to create custom snippets triggered by voice commands. The tool works across email, Slack, documents, and other typing environments, providing a set-once, save-forever approach to common text inputs. Learn more

Robotics

China Accelerates Quadruped Robot Mass Production: Chinese robotics companies are rapidly scaling quadruped robot production, with DEEP Robotics achieving mass production capabilities and Unitree Robotics controlling over 60% of the global quadruped market. Unitree is pursuing a $7 billion IPO valuation, whilst hundreds of Chinese smart-robot firms have registered with national support for technological leadership. Next-generation models like DEEP Robotics' Lynx M20 blur the lines between legged and wheeled mobility. [Details here]

HITTER Table Tennis Robot Achieves Human-Level Performance: Researchers from UC Berkeley and Tsinghua University developed HITTER, a humanoid robot that achieved 106 consecutive successful hits against human opponents in table tennis. The system combines model-based planning with reinforcement learning control, enabling shot returns at speeds exceeding 5 m/s whilst maintaining balance through sustained rallies. Details here

Universal Robots Launches UR8L Collaborative Robot: Universal Robots introduced the UR8 Long collaborative robot at FABTECH 2025, featuring a 1,750mm reach matching the larger UR20 but in a lighter form factor. With 8kg payload capacity and compatibility with PolyScope 5 and PolyScope X motion control, the robot targets complex welding, precision tasks, and multi-point inspection applications whilst achieving 30% mass reduction compared to the UR20. Details here

Eufy's MarsWalker Robotic Stairlift Innovation: Anker's Eufy brand unveiled MarsWalker, a robotic stairlift system launching in spring 2026 that addresses the long-standing limitation of robotic vacuums being unable to navigate stairs. The system uses a drive-track base and four robotic arms to transport vacuum cleaners between floors, working with the RoboVac Omni S2 flagship model priced at $1,599. Details here

Governance & Security

This week's developments highlight the critical importance of robust frameworks for AI deployment.

Anthropic's $1.5B Copyright Settlement: Anthropic agreed to pay $1.5 billion in what may be the largest copyright recovery in US history, settling author lawsuits over alleged use of copyrighted books to train Claude AI models. The company will pay authors approximately $3,000 per work and destroy original training files, though the settlement only covers past use and leaves future claims open. A court hearing determined final approval on September 8th. Read more

AI Chatbot Data Privacy Concerns: Analysis of major AI platforms including Grok, ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini reveals important concerns about how user interactions are handled and whether they're used for AI training. The research examines what happens when users share prompts or personal files with these platforms, highlighting critical privacy considerations as AI tools become more integrated into daily workflows.

  • HeyGen AI Video Creation Platform: HeyGen offers professional video creation without filming or editing, featuring hundreds of AI avatars with natural expressions and voiceovers in 40+ languages with custom accents. The platform includes face swap capabilities, workflow automation, and offers a free plan with paid options starting from $29/month. Check it out

    Midjourney's Style Explorer Launch: Midjourney launched its first style explorer tool for design exploration, offering intuitive mix-and-match capabilities perfect for runway-ready aesthetic projects. The tool enables designers to experiment with different visual styles and combinations more efficiently than previous iterations.

    Soundcore AI Meeting Transcription: Anker's Soundcore brand introduced AI-powered meeting transcription capabilities that meticulously capture meeting details, freeing users from manual note-taking to focus on conversations. The solution represents growing integration of AI transcription in consumer audio devices.

Other things we’re loving

Community

The Spotlight Podcast

In this episode of the Project Flux podcast, Vito Peleg, CEO and co-founder of Atarim, discusses the evolution of web development tools, the impact of AI on project delivery, and the importance of collaboration in creative processes. He shares insights from his journey from a rock band to a tech startup, emphasizing the need for better tools and the role of AI in enhancing project management. Vito also explores the balance between AI and human collaboration, the creative tension necessary for innovation, and bold predictions for the future of AI in creative industries.

One more thing

@cnn

Geoffrey Hinton, who is known as the “godfather of AI,” fears the technology he helped build could wipe out humanity. Hinton tells Anderso... See more

That’s it for today!

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See you soon,

James, Yoshi and Aaron—Project Flux 

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