Bechtel and Cyberhawk Expand AI-Driven Drone Construction

Bechtel Corporation and Cyberhawk have expanded their long-term collaboration on drone-based construction monitoring. The two companies formalized joint work on capturing, processing, and using aerial data across complex engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) projects.

According to a report from Dronelife, the expanded scope covers the entire toolchain that turns raw drone captures into project decisions. The focus is on delivering near real-time site intelligence, which the companies state is a core requirement for scaling AI, robotics, and autonomous systems in construction.

John Platt of Bechtel said, "Advanced construction capabilities depend on having a clear and current view of the jobsite." He added that strengthening data capture and use improves execution today while enabling future automation.

Live Project Deployments and iHawk Collaboration

Both companies are deploying and testing new approaches on live projects. Priorities include autonomous data capture, automated processing pipelines, and AI-assisted site analysis. The teams follow a cycle of field deployment, rapid iteration, and scaling for proven solutions. This model puts new tools into immediate use, iterates based on results, and scales what works to additional job sites.

Matt Zafuto of Cyberhawk explained the role of their platform. "Our iHawk platform uses AI to convert drone data into actionable project intelligence, automating analysis, surfacing risk, and driving faster, smarter decisions at scale," he said.

An Eight-Year Partnership History

The two companies have worked together since 2018. That year, Bechtel, Cyberhawk, and Shell launched one of the first large-scale deployments of weekly drone-based construction monitoring. The teams paired aerial data with the Cyberhawk iHawk platform to run data-driven project execution from the outset.

EPC Expo 2026 Session

Platt and Zafuto co-presented the latest work at the Energy Projects Conference and Expo 2026 in Houston. The event ran June 16-17, 2026. Their session was titled "Enabling AI and Automation in Construction: Building a Real-Time Understanding of the Jobsite." It outlined practical approaches now in the field and covered the foundational data requirements needed to enable autonomous operations "inside the fence" of a construction site.

The collaboration aims to build the data infrastructure necessary for the next generation of air transportation and autonomous systems within industrial environments. More information is available directly from Cyberhawk.