Construction Industry Cloud CONOC and JAPAN AI Enter Capital and Business Alliance

CONOC Inc. (Headquarters: Tama City, Tokyo; Representative Director: Hajime Yamaguchi; hereinafter referred to as CONOC), which promotes DX in the construction industry and works towards realizing business transformation through AI utilization (AX: AI Transformation), announces that it has received investment from JAPAN AI Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku City, Tokyo; Representative Director & President: Tomoaki Kudo; hereinafter referred to as JAPAN AI), a company developing AI-related products and services, and has commenced business collaboration towards the joint development of AI agents for the construction industry.

◾️Background of Business Collaboration

Despite being a core industry in Japan with a market size of 52 trillion yen, the construction industry's DX adoption rate remains at 20.7% (※1), and AI utilization is only 9.4% (※2). Many operations, including estimates, invoicing, progress management, and daily site reports, are still handled manually or with analog methods, leading to long-standing issues of heavy workloads for site personnel and reliance on individual expertise.

Amidst this, the industry is at a turning point due to the enforcement of overtime work hour regulations in April 2024 and the worsening labor shortage. While conventional cloud tools (SaaS) have contributed to operational "efficiency," data input and decision-making still depend on humans, highlighting the challenge that even utilizing these tools is difficult in labor-scarce sites.

AI agents are the solution to this problem. AI agents read data, create documents, and detect anomalies on behalf of humans, realizing a system where operations can run with "zero input, only confirmation." In the construction industry, AI agents are no longer an advanced option but are becoming the foundation for business continuity.

In response to these industry changes, CONOC provides the construction industry-specific cloud service "CONOC Construction Industry Cloud" to over 777 construction businesses. Leveraging accumulated operational data and industry knowledge, CONOC is also promoting the in-house development of 16 specialized AI agents for construction tasks, including estimate OCR, daily report generation, and progress optimization.

This collaboration aims to further accelerate the realization of this in-house AI agent concept by partnering with JAPAN AI, which has strengths in AI development platforms, in both technology and implementation.

※1: Calculated by summing the proportions of "implemented as company-wide strategy," "implemented at department level," and "undergoing demonstration/experimentation" as the percentage of construction companies implementing DX, based on Figure 2-6 of the "DX White Paper" by the Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA).

https://www.ipa.go.jp/publish/wp-dx/gmcbt8000000botk-att/000108043.pdf

※2: "Survey on Generative AI Utilization" (August 2024) by Teikoku Databank.

https://www.tdb.co.jp/resource/files/assets/d4b8e8ee91d1489c9a2abd23a4bb5219/ed8435fc5bfc428c807c0568f5ecf53a/p240802.pdf

◾️Details of Business Collaboration

CONOC is currently promoting the in-house development of AI agents specialized for construction operations. This collaboration will further accelerate this initiative by combining CONOC's domain knowledge of construction operations and operational data obtained from over 777 implementations with JAPAN AI's AI development platform and implementation resources.

Specifically, CONOC will lead the requirement definition and operational design of AI agents, while JAPAN AI will provide the technical platform and implementation support. This will significantly increase the development speed of AI agents in business areas such as estimate management, progress management, and site reporting, aiming for early practical application.

Furthermore, it will promote the automation of daily tasks in construction sites, such as document creation, progress management, and site reporting, thereby reducing the burden on site personnel and improving productivity.

◾️Comments from Representatives

Comment from Tomoaki Kudo, Representative Director & President of JAPAN AI Inc.

CONOC possesses abundant operational data and deep domain knowledge in the construction industry. By combining this with JAPAN AI's technological capabilities, we will jointly promote AX (AI Transformation) in the construction industry.

JAPAN AI aims to solve deeper industry challenges and contribute to the further popularization and development of AI utilization in Japan.

Comment from Hajime Yamaguchi, Representative Director of CONOC Inc.

I myself have been involved in the construction industry for over 20 years, and as CONOC, we have provided construction industry-specific cloud services to over 777 clients. However, the labor shortage at construction sites has reached a stage where cloud tools alone cannot solve it.

That is precisely why we believe AI agents, where AI takes over tasks on behalf of humans, are necessary, and we have been developing them in-house.

Through this collaboration with JAPAN AI, we believe we can significantly accelerate the realization of this vision.

By combining CONOC, which deeply understands construction sites, with JAPAN AI, which has strengths in AI platform technology, we will realize an environment where operations can run with "zero input, only confirmation," fundamentally changing the way the construction industry works.

◾️Future Outlook

CONOC plans to build an AI agent layer on top of its existing SaaS platform and sequentially release 16 AI agents by the end of fiscal year 2026.

By combining CONOC's operational knowledge and user base with JAPAN AI's technological capabilities, we will jointly promote the realization of an environment where construction operations can run with "zero input, only confirmation."

Through this collaboration, we aim to accelerate AX for the entire construction industry and create an environment where people working on-site can focus more on their core tasks.

◾️About CONOC Construction Industry Cloud

Born from the perspective of construction site managers, "CONOC Construction Industry Cloud" is an AI-powered operational management tool for the construction industry.

It centralizes the creation of estimates and invoices, visualization of sales and costs, progress management, and other operations, promoting digitalization (DX) of business. Furthermore, by supporting the sharing of experience and technical knowledge, it contributes to building a foundation for business transformation through AI utilization (AX: AI Transformation).

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◾️About JAPAN AI Inc.

JAPAN AI Inc. aims to "Create a Sustainable Future Society with AI" as its purpose, developing AI-related products and services to contribute to the further development of various industries.

Headquarters: Sumitomo Fudosan Shinjuku Oak Tower 5F/6F, 6-8-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Established: April 2023

Representative: Tomoaki Kudo, Representative Director & President

Business Activities: Research and development of artificial intelligence, consulting services related to artificial intelligence

URL: https://japan-ai.co.jp/

◾️About CONOC Inc.

Having been involved in the construction industry for many years, CONOC decided in June 2021 to develop Con-tech business aimed at DX in the construction industry since its founding. The corporate statement "Revolutionizing the Construction Industry" was established, and the company changed its name to "CONOC (Konokku)," combining "CON" from Construction and "NOC" flipped, to develop its Con-tech business.

Location: Fuku-man Bldg. 2F, 1-12-12 Sannoge, Tama City, Tokyo

Established: March 2010 (Founded January 2004)

Representative: Hajime Yamaguchi, Representative Director

Business Activities: Con-tech business

URL: https://conoc-dx.co.jp/

◾️Inquiries Regarding This Release

Email: info@conoc.jp

Public Relations Contact: Honda