Paul Doherty has worn more hats than most in the built environment. Trained as an architect in Manhattan, he detoured into technology early in his career—designing trade show booths for IBM in the late 1980s, back when Apple was still an upstart. That experience sparked a revelation: Computer companies, with their networks of component suppliers, looked a lot like general contractors managing subcontractors.
Today, Doherty is president and CEO of the Digit Group, advising governments and developers worldwide on smart cities and emerging technologies. His work touches everything from blockchain-enabled smart contracts to AI agents, robotics and even the role of cultural anthropology in city design.
In a recent conversation with Construction Executive, Doherty explains why he believes buildings are “computers we can live in,” how blockchain might finally deliver the trust construction contracts need and why small contractors shouldn’t be intimidated by cutting-edge tech. Above all, he stresses, technology should give people time back. Time to walk the site instead of sit in the trailer. Time to have better conversations with clients, coworkers and communities. Time to be human.
Let’s start with your journey. You trained as an architect, but your career has taken you far beyond traditional design. How did you get from there to leading conversations on smart cities and construction technology?
It’s been an amazing arc. I sometimes joke that I feel like Benjamin Button—the older I get, the more youthful my thinking becomes.
It goes back to architecture school. I did well academically, which allowed me to alternate semesters between the classroom and internships. Because I studied in Manhattan, I had the chance to work with some big firms. But when I thought about spending two years doing nothing but bathroom details, I realized that wasn’t for me.
Instead, I took an offer from IBM in the late ’80s. At the time, they were the only real game in town. Apple was just emerging, and IBM needed people to design their trade show booths. That meant I had to tear computers apart, understand how networking worked and showcase it all to the public. I got deeply immersed in technology—not just how the machines looked, but how they functioned.
That’s when it hit me: IBM didn’t make every component. They relied on OEMs for memory boards, motherboards and more, then assembled it all. Isn’t that exactly what a general contractor does? They don’t own the window company or the painting company—they coordinate and deliver the project. From then on, I started seeing buildings as computers. And if we think of them that way, with walls, floors and ceilings as components, what happens when we connect everything? That’s the “Internet of Buildings.”
Fast-forwarding to today, you’re advising governments across the globe on smart cities. What keeps you excited about this work after decades in the field?
I’ve been fortunate to work across architecture, construction, real estate development and now at the level of entire cities. What keeps me here is that sense of connection.
During COVID, I reread a biography of Leonardo da Vinci, and one quote stood out: “I’m learning how to see again, that everything is connected to everything else.” That’s exactly how I approach smart cities.
I don’t start with roads or buildings. I start with people—their education systems, healthcare, transportation, food and culture. I even bring cultural anthropologists into projects to ask: Why do people want to live here? What will attract them and, more importantly, how will they build community over time?
Cities can’t just be “pop-ups.” They need meaning and story. Technology is part of that, but it’s not about gadgets for their own sake. It’s about designing environments where people can thrive.
You’ve said that technology shouldn’t just save money or time—it should enhance the experience of the built environment. Can you explain that?
Too often, we think of technology only in terms of efficiency: Will it cut costs, save time or improve quality? Those are important, but that’s not the full picture.
I see technology as a design tool. It’s not just about building faster—it’s about enriching the human experience of what gets built. The real promise of emerging tech is when it becomes transparent, when it fades into the background and simply helps people work and live better.
That’s why I get excited about things like AI, blockchain and smart contracts. They’re not ends in themselves. They’re means to creating trusted systems, freeing people from grunt work and letting them focus on what matters.
Let’s dig into that. AI is everywhere in the headlines, but you’ve been clear that AI alone isn’t enough. Why is that?
Think of AI by itself like cotton candy. It looks great, it tastes sweet, but halfway through you realize there’s no nutritional value—and maybe you get a stomachache.
Right now, AI systems are trained on scraped internet data, which can be biased or flawed. That’s why sometimes you get answers that sound convincing but aren’t correct—hallucinations. But when you combine AI with blockchain, things get interesting. Blockchain creates immutable, trusted data. So if you layer AI on top of that, now you’re working with reliable information.
That’s when you can do things like smart contracts. Imagine a residential contractor who uses the same contract language repeatedly. Instead of drafting from scratch in Word or PDF, an AI agent builds the agreement in seconds, drawing on blockchain-verified templates. You “set it and forget it.” It’s like renting a car—you don’t read every clause of the Hertz contract each time, you just sign and move forward. That’s where we’re headed in construction.
Some of what you describe can sound pretty high-level. What does this mean for the small to mid-size contractors who make up much of the industry?
That’s the most exciting part—this isn’t just for the Bechtels and Halliburtons. The technology is democratizing.
We’re moving into a world of vibe development and disposable software. You can talk into your phone—“I need to know where my delivery is”—and the system gives you an answer: It’s an hour and a half out. That means you can direct your crew to another task instead of waiting. Or you can ask, “Does everyone on site have their workman’s comp certificates?” and it’s automatically verified.
Small contractors don’t need to know the coding behind it. They just need to talk naturally into their phones. The AI agents do the grunt work in the background, connecting apps through open APIs. It’s seamless and it’s already happening.
You mentioned smart cities earlier. How do you define one—and how does it differ from the cities we live in now?
I like to joke that New York, where I was born and raised, is a “dumb city.”
When the term “smart city” first emerged 15 or 20 years ago, it was about using technology to improve municipal services—save money, save time, improve quality. That’s fine, but to me a true smart city anticipates your needs. It reacts to situations that enhance public safety and quality of life.
What excites me now is the idea of personifying buildings. California’s community college system is experimenting with this. Their campuses already have building management systems to regulate temperature, air quality and so on. But they’re layering AI on top to give buildings personalities. A storage facility might speak like a quiet introvert. A high-performance lab might sound like a valley girl. A classroom might have the voice of an Oxford professor.
So when there’s an issue—safety, maintenance, energy use—you don’t dig into a dashboard. You get a text from your building. That’s where we’re heading: buildings and cities that interact with us directly, almost like trusted assistants.
Drones have been a big topic lately, especially with uncertainty around DJI. What’s your take?
I lived in China when DJI was getting started in Shenzhen. They’re the Apple of drones—massively influential. And yes, when governments say there are ties to the military or intelligence services, there’s usually some fire where there’s smoke. But the bigger picture is how their dominance has shaped our industry.
By producing drones so cheaply—$250 units that were practically disposable—DJI lowered the barrier to entry. Suddenly, small contractors could afford eyes in the sky for site management, security and inspections.
Now, if DJI is restricted or banned, that could seem like a setback. But I think it will actually open the door to something better: drones as a service. Instead of owning and maintaining hardware, contractors will contract for drone output—inspections, mapping, security checks—as part of project budgets. That means better services at lower costs.
And robotics? We often see humanoid robots in headlines, but you’ve suggested that’s the wrong focus.
Exactly. The humanoid robots you see on YouTube make for great headlines, but they’re not practical for our industry anytime soon. Where robotics really makes sense is in high-risk, high-cost areas.
Take demolition. It’s one of the most dangerous tasks on site, with high workers’ comp premiums. Stanley Black & Decker developed a small caterpillar-like demolition robot. It’s not humanoid—it’s just designed to do one risky task efficiently. That saves money and, more importantly, lives.
Or consider punch lists. A humanoid robot wandering a site with cameras, highlighting defects with big red dots on a report—that’s useful. The key isn’t making machines look like people. It’s making them do the jobs where automation is safer and more cost-effective.
You’ve also written about the “metaverse of construction.” What does that mean in practice?
The metaverse isn’t going to arrive with a headline saying “It’s here.” It’s creeping in, piece by piece.
For construction, the most practical entry point is digital twins. Today you can overlay a digital model directly onto a physical space through a phone or headset. That means an apprentice carpenter doesn’t need chalk lines on the floor—they can see exactly where a wall should go, projected from the BIM model. Accuracy improves dramatically.
Beyond that, I think we can learn from the gaming world. In Ready Player One, the nightclub looked normal at first, with gravity and walls. But on the dance floor, gravity disappeared and people could do impossible moves. That’s storytelling through design.
We may not build gravity-free dance floors, but we can use digital environments to challenge assumptions. Why do we design certain spaces the way we always have? What new experiences could we create? The metaverse is really a call to reimagine, not to escape reality.
Finally, when you speak at conferences, what do you tell small contractors who want to start with these technologies but feel overwhelmed?
First, I joke that they should quit the industry—which usually gets their attention. Then I tell them: you’ve already started. By sitting in this room, you’ve taken step one.
Everyone has a different technology readiness level. Some just got their first smartphone. Others already have automated back offices. The key is not to talk down to anyone or overwhelm them with buzzwords. It’s to encourage them to ask consequential questions: What will this do for me, for my coworkers, for my business, for the quality of our projects?
And remember: This is noble work. Without shelter, humanity doesn’t survive. The technologies emerging today aren’t about replacing people—they’re about giving us superhuman powers to do our jobs better. The tech will find you. You’ll see a coworker using an app, or hear your kid talk about a tool they downloaded, and you’ll start exploring.
Don’t feel like you’re behind. No one’s ahead. We’re all creating the cow paths of this industry together.
SEE ALSO: EYES ON THE SKY: REGULATING DJI DRONES ON FEDERAL AND PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION SITES
