Confluence is a series of architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry professional development events that bring design technology and product management leaders together in collaborative discourse. Its signature conference, Confluence Lexington, is a three-day, invite-only event themed around a pressing industry technology issue and held in the fall every year. In the last few years, regional, one-day events have also been added, as well as a podcast hosted by AVAIL CEO and Founder Randall Stevens and TRXL Media Director Evan Troxel. We sat down with Randall Stevens — who is also host of Confluence — ahead of the Lexington 2024 event centered around artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in September.
AVAIL CEO and Founder Randall Stevens is also the host of Confluence.
Where did the idea for Confluence come from?
I was having coffee one morning in 2019 at the University of Kentucky with Brent Seales, who is the computer vision expert behind the acclaimed Vesuvius scrolls project. We were talking about advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning: 2019 was a pivotal year for AI advancements.
On the walk back to the office, I was like, we should do an event that brings together people from academia and people from the commercial tech world who are both building this AEC technology and consuming it. I named it Confluence, which is the bringing together of multiple streams, and came back to the office and started jotting down ideas. That was spring of 2019. We pulled off the first Confluence event in the fall of that year, with a member of Brent’s team as a guest speaker.
What DO YOU hope to achieve with Confluence events?
The goal of a Confluence event is to talk about technology that is going to impact the industry in the next 12 to 18 months.
Anytime there's new technology, there's a hype cycle that happens around it. Confluence is a chance to flesh out what's real: what's working and what's not working.
We put on a program that intentionally tries to initiate those conversations, and we design the event specifically with lots of what I call “white space” in between for discussion. It's the conversations on the side, amongst one another, that really push those ideas forward. It’s all about sharing information.
Why does AVAIL host Confluence?
We learn so much as a company from Confluence. These conversations feed our product development and strategy so we can understand what firms are needing, wanting, and thinking. In order to make the best products that we can make, we have to be in these kinds of conversations.
That's why we invite other AEC technology companies, too. The product management and product developers of these companies can get a similar value out of Confluence. We see ourselves as an equal participant. This is not a customer or sales event for AVAIL. Some attendees are obviously customers, and we use it as a way to stay close to them. Ultimately, it’s networking for us, an opportunity to meet other people in the industry and have feedback and connections. It’s also about leading innovation at AVAIL and beyond.
What past Confluence events have been the most impactful for you?
Last year when The Realities of AI and ML was the theme, there was a lot of excitement around technologies like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and DALL-E. Everybody in the industry was experimenting.
At Confluence Lexington 2023, you got to see what people were thinking and how they were thinking about implementing those technologies, but it was also a reality check that nothing has really hit the ground yet. It's all still in flux about where the value is, which is natural when there are brand new technologies. Everybody's trying to figure out what to do with it. That’s why we're continuing the theme this year around AI and ML. I think we're still largely in that cycle.
What do AEC firms gain in sending leaders to Confluence?
Confluence gives AEC leaders perspective on what is changing in the industry near-term that they need to be paying attention to.
With AI and ML, for example, there is so much buzz around the technologies and everyone is trying to figure out the best way to utilize them. Confluence sessions explore what is possible with these technologies today, what is working for firms, and what is not working. Attendees are able to take that valuable view-point back to their firms where it can inform their technology strategies moving forward.
Confluence Lexington 2024 is this September. What are you most excited to share with guests?
I’m excited to see the progress that has been made over the last year. Chatbots, for example, are real and being implemented by firms like IMEG and Thornton Tomasetti. They're beginning to be in use. That rubber has now met the road. We're also going to talk about some of the AI and ML work that we're implementing at AVAIL.
Additionally, I’m excited to hear from AEC industry leaders like SHoP Architects Principal John Cerone and Thornton Tomasetti Managing Principal and Chief Technology Officer Robert Otani in the sessions we have planned.
Plus, I am always excited to bring people to Kentucky. We’re doing the full Woodford Reserve experience this year, which is an iconic brand that everybody knows, alongside Castle & Key, which has this off-the-charts property. That will be fun to explore.
We have also lined up a member of Brent Seales’ lab to give an update on the Vesuvius scrolls project they introduced everyone to at the first Confluence event in 2019. They have made some incredible discoveries. In exploring these technologies, we don't have to only be talking about AEC. In fact, a lot of inspiration can be drawn from adjacent industries or academia.
About THE HOST
The host of Confluence, Randall Stevens is also the CEO and Founder of AEC technology company AVAIL, which creates software for the global architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. Randall is passionate about creating solutions for the AEC industry and currently leading the development of an AVAIL suggestion engine and AI chatbot, among other forward-thinking initiatives.
