Gonzalo Galindo, Head of Cemex Ventures, highlights the Top 50 Contech Startups 2024, emphasizing AI-driven efficiency, sustainability, and automation. Key trends include robotics, predictive analytics, and low-carbon materials, shaping construction’s future amid investment growth and regulatory shifts.
What were the key criteria for selecting the startups included in this year’s Top 50 Contech Startups list?
The selection process is based on several criteria and is decided by the Investment & Business Development team. One of the strongest sources to build this list is the Construction Startup Competition, completed with the contributions from our investment and collaboration pipeline. We select startups with unique and innovative solutions that are aligned with Cemex Ventures’ four focus areas—green construction, enhanced productivity, supply chain, and construction future—and their potential to disrupt traditional practices of the construction industry. Overall, we aim to find passionate and resilient entrepreneurs and businesses that are covering the needs and challenges of the current built environment.
What major trends in construction technology stood out among the companies on the list this year?
This year, we saw a surge in solutions addressing the reduction of carbon footprint through sustainable materials (recycled and upcycled materials) and more efficient and productive construction processes.. There was also a noticeable rise in AI-driven tools for project management, project tracking, predictive analytics & maintenance, and automation, as well as advancements in industrialized construction methods and robotics to address labour shortages and efficiency gaps. Beyond our Top 50 report, we saw that 37% of all the capital raised in construction tech ecosystem went to AI, and the largest deals registered in 2024 went to solutions using AI.
Are there any regions or markets that showed a notable increase in innovation or representation in this year’s list compared to previous years?
North America and Europe continue leading the investment activity in our industry with 85% of all Contech transactions. From a deal perspective, Asia-Pacific showed significant growth in representations, with innovative startups tackling challenges unique to densely populated urban areas. Europe also strengthened its presence with growth across all the focus areas, although sustainability and productivity took 66% of the transactions. It seems that sustainability-driven solutions continue reflecting the region’s regulatory pressure to adopt and implement greener construction practices.
How many selected startups focus on sustainability, and what specific solutions stood out in addressing environmental challenges?
We try to build a balanced list of startups across our verticals every year. However, we see solutions from other buckets with a slight sustainability component, such as making processes efficient and greener by consuming fewer resources. In the Green Construction group, key innovations included CCUS technologies, LCA tools, AI tools for optimizing material usage, recycled construction materials and waste management, startups developing alternative cementitious materials and water efficiency & conservation.
With AI becoming increasingly integral, how are the listed startups leveraging artificial intelligence and automation to transform the construction industry?
AI is being used across various phases of the construction value chain, from generative design to predictive maintenance and real-time project monitoring. Many startups on the list leverage AI to optimize workflows, improve safety through automated risk assessments, and reduce project delays by predicting supply chain bottlenecks. Likewise, automation is particularly prevalent in robotics for tasks like bricklaying, 3D printing, site inspections or rebar works.
Which startups or categories on the list do you see as having the highest investment potential or the greatest impact in the near future?
Startups focused on the sustainability, decarbonization and supply chain efficiency fields stand out for their investment potential, given the pressing demand for tackling industry´s carbon footprint, resource optimization, regulatory pressure and meet carbon budgets and targets. Specifically, those developing low-carbon materials, energy-efficient technologies, and AI-driven supply chain platforms are likely to have the greatest near-term impact. Lastly, the race for full automated sites has started, startups succeeding in automation lowering actual costs and increasing production will also take investors’ attention.
Are any of the startups from the list currently collaborating with Cemex Ventures, and if so, can you share examples of these partnerships?
All the startups included in the list are (or has been) part of our pipeline. While all these companies can benefit from our knowledge, our extensive network, or programs like the Construction Startup Competition, we prioritize those solutions whose vision is aligned with Cemex´s strategic needs and those that can help our operations to be more sustainable and efficient making our corporation more reliable and competitive. For example, some of these startups have participated in our acceleration program LeapLab, others are already collaborating with our operations and others are working with our Global R&D team.
Based on the innovations showcased, what do you see as the most significant opportunities and challenges for Contech in the next 5-10 years?
The most promising opportunities lie in addressing our industry decarbonization challenges throughout the entire construction lifecycle. The optimization of processes to make construction sites leaner and agile performing tasks on time and on budget will continue with capital inflows in the next years. Advances in AI, robotics, and industrialized construction will help to achieve this level of optimization. However, challenges include the slow adoption rate of new technologies due to the fragmented nature of the industry, regulatory hurdles, materials scarcity or the need for substantial investment to scale these solutions globally.
