CMiC unveils NexusAI: plain-language AI agents arrive in construction ERP

CMiC introduced NexusAI today, a new AI launchpad inside its NEXUS construction ERP. Announced at CONNECT 2026, the company’s 28th annual customer conference, NexusAI lets construction teams launch AI agents and surface ERP content by asking in plain language — with, in CMiC’s words, “no screens to navigate.”

The idea is to put the ERP’s data and workflows behind a question instead of a menu tree. A project manager who needs a job cost figure, a payroll check or a new invoice should be able to ask for it, review what the agent proposes, and confirm — rather than hunt through modules. Whether that holds up in daily use will depend on details CMiC has not yet shared, including when NexusAI reaches customers and what it costs.

Ask, don’t navigate#

NexusAI is powered by the CMiC MCP Server, and CMiC stresses the guardrail first: every request runs within the user’s existing security settings and permissions. That matters in construction ERP, where who can see a job’s costs or approve a payment is not a detail to improvise. The launchpad does not get a separate, wider set of keys; it works inside the access the person asking already has.

The interaction model is deliberately conversational. Users launch agents and pull up ERP content by asking, instead of opening screens and filling in forms. CMiC positions NexusAI as the front door to NEXUS rather than a separate product: the agents live where the job costing, payroll and project data already live.

What teams can do with it#

According to the announcement, construction teams get real-time KPIs and alerts at a glance, guided workflows driven by document uploads or plain-language requests, and the ability to create jobs, budgets, invoices and more through a simple request, review and confirmation process. The confirmation step is the load-bearing part: nothing is presented as firing off on its own. A person asks, checks the proposal, and confirms before the ERP record changes.

Steve Cangiano, CMiC’s Chief Product Officer, framed this release as a sharpening of the first NEXUS release, “surrounding job costing and payroll.” With the new capabilities, he said, “job costing runs more efficiently and accurately, payroll data is better protected, and project teams have real-time visibility across every phase of work.” The announcement gives no figures for any of those three claims — no time saved, no error rate, no customer example — so they read as the company’s goals for the release, not measured results.

The conference around it#

CONNECT 2026 runs November 1–4 at the JW Marriott Grande Lakes in Orlando, Florida, and brings together 900 customers, partners, industry leaders and product specialists for more than 30 sessions led by more than 30 speakers, plus four new experiences and 24 sponsors and exhibitors. The guest keynotes pair AI with construction directly: Zack Kass, a Global AI Advisor who previously led go-to-market at OpenAI, and Steve Jones, Industry Insights and Research Leader at Dodge Construction Network, on what comes next for construction.

Attendees also get an all-new Executive Track, NASBA-certified CPE credits, interactive learning labs and one-on-one meetings with CMiC product experts. Shirin Ali, CMiC’s Head of Marketing, called it the company’s “boldest conference yet” — conference language, but the program itself is the substance: NexusAI is being introduced to the customers who would actually have to use it, in the room, rather than dropped as a press release alone.

What CMiC did not say#

The announcement discloses no pricing, no availability or rollout date, no named customers using NexusAI, and no performance benchmarks. It does not say whether NexusAI is included for existing NEXUS customers or sold separately, which models power the agents beyond the MCP Server framing, or how the launchpad behaves when a request touches data the requester should not see — beyond the assurance that existing permissions apply.

For context, NEXUS itself is not new. CMiC first announced the AI-powered construction ERP in April 2025, and its launch announcement for NEXUS described a platform built on OpenAI technology, with natural-language queries and agent-driven automation. NexusAI extends that platform with a launchpad for agents, rather than starting a new one. The open question is execution: a plain-language front door is only as good as the permissions, review steps and rollout behind it, and CMiC’s announcement answers the first two in outline while leaving the third — when, and for whom — for later.