Promise Robotics partners with D.R. Horton on physical AI for homebuilding

Promise Robotics says it can accelerate homebuilding by standardizing component manufacturing. Source: Promise Robotics

The construction industry is fragmented and has been relatively conservative about adopting new technologies, but physical AI promises to modernize homebuilding. Today, Promise Robotics said it has signed a multi-year agreement with D.R. Horton, which will use its Factory-as-a-Service capabilities to produce more than 1,250 homes in the U.S.

“Homebuilding has long lacked the production infrastructure needed to scale with the speed, predictability, and efficiency of modern manufacturing,” stated Ramtin Attar, co-founder and CEO of Promise Robotics. “Physical AI changes that by creating a new production model that can expand capacity within and across markets. Our goal is to make that capability accessible to builders across North America and support the industry’s long-term growth.”

“We started the company on the central thesis that robotics for the homebuilding space needed a very different approach and tech stack,” he told The Robot Report . “We started with mechanical and HVAC, and w’ve built the physical AI infrastructure for building component manufacturing.”

Founded in 2021, Promise Robotics said it has integrated robotics, AI , software, and manufacturing systems to connect the homebuilding workflow, from design translation and production planning through automated manufacturing and onsite installation. The Toronto-based company claimed that its Factory-as-a-Service (FaaS) model enables homebuilders to access advanced production infrastructure without the cost, complexity, or risk of developing and operating it themselves.

Construction needs to be more repeatable

As construction firms navigate persistent housing demand , labor shortages, rising costs, and pressure to increase output, they are searching for more repeatable and scalable ways to expand production, said Promise Robotics.

“Unlike traditional manufacturing, especially automotive , where there are five or six big players, the construction industry is large but fragmented,” explained Ramtar. “The workforce for homebuilding is also highly fragmented between businesses that manage the land, consumer houses, and seasonal trades. It doesn’t invest in the workforce in the same way as traditional manufacturing.”

“There’s no such thing as productization, in which the same car is built millions of times with small variations,” he added. “Even in the same home, every floor or wall is different. The clearances, components, and layouts are different.”

“To tackle this set of technical and business challenges, we take a distributed manufacturing approach,” said Ramtar. “Microfactories are a good problem for AI to solve, and we’ve spent years developing the foundational model and systems around construction.”

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Software provides flexibility, scalability, says Promise Robotics

Promise Robotics handles that variability and resilience with software that can understand the limits of what’s possible, in terms of motion , building materials, and tools, Ramtar noted.

The company’s software can improve over time, allowing for reduced expenses. It is currently working with its own cloud-based simulations and KUKA industrial robot arms, but it is robot-agnostic, he said.

“We have a pretty deep tech stack, incorporating computer vision , LLMs [large language models] for initial prep of data flows, and a reasoning model that’s domain-specific,” said Ramtar. “For every home we build, we produce 300 new images, 5,000 new tactile sources, and a lot of processes. We’re very data rich, and that’s why we present ourselves as a physical AI infrastructure and not just a technology.”

“Our floors are 45 ft. and walls are 20 ft.,” he explained. “The walls have windows and doors in them. We’re also manufacturing stair cages that can be dropped in for fast assembly. Our sweet spot is townhomes between three to four stories. Taller than that, and there’s more need for sprinklers, bracing, and metalwork.”

The company can build a two-family home with two stories, a basement, and a garage in one day, not including electronics, window installations, and plumbing. That process typically takes two to three weeks, Ramtar said.

Promise Robotics integrates construction workflows with FaaS

Promise Robotics said its technology interprets existing home designs, generates production plans and robotic instructions, orchestrates manufacturing, and connects that production with site installation. Rather than automating isolated tasks, the company said it brings these capabilities together in one integrated environment.

“FaaS gives a broad range of homebuilders across geographies access to an integrated production platform,” said Promise Robotics. The FaaS model can help builders improve cycle times, increase capacity, and scale more predictably across communities and markets, it added.

“While every house we build is different, the process is the same — handling files, translating them into robotic instructions,” Ramtar said. “The robots are trained to build with highly variable components. We need to be able to support a lot of different types of builders and different types of products. We’re building everything from single to multiple units to duplexes and fourplexes, townhomes, so forth. And it’s never the same.”

Promise Robotics is setting up its initial FaaS facilities in Edmonton and Calgary in Canada and Phoenix. Its own crews operate the systems for a tight feedback loop, Ramtar said.

Promise Robotics’ core technology includes fastening algorithms and can be set to comply with local building codes on things like spacing. “Unlike the harsh environment in Canada, Phoenix required 50% less sheeting and different bracing,” said Ramtar. “Our system is built to adjust to different markets and generalize through AI.”

Promise Robotics is starting its Factory-as-a-Service in…

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