Progress claims are still done via Excel, email, and paper. Communication failures cause 52% of rework — $31.3B/year. Only 18% of contractors use anything beyond spreadsheets. The US has Built Technologies ($1.5B). Australia has nothing. I did the research. Now I need a co-founder who knows construction.
"Only 18% use apps beyond email or spreadsheets."
"Creating significant blind spots such as work reported late, progress unverified, and decisions made with incomplete information."
"Contractors complain about wasting half their day on estimates that may never lead to paying work."
"Bookkeepers downloading 35 excels each month."
"Procore priced as an enterprise tool" / "Buildertrend has no built-in system for issue escalation, RFIs, or formal document workflows."
NSW, VIC, QLD all have different SoP legislation with different claim timeframes, adjudication processes, and payment schedules. Building for this creates a genuine regulatory moat that US products can't cross.
Progress claims follow AS 2124 and AS 4000 contracts with specific claim/response timeframes, retention rules, bank guarantees, and defect liability periods. US construction fintech doesn't understand head contracts and variations.
The dominant player targets large commercial projects. Volume residential builders — the ones building Australia's 1.2M needed homes — are underserved. There's no affordable, AU-specific solution for the builders who need it most.
AU's share of global ConTech investment doubled from 5% to 11%. The money is flowing in. But nobody has built the progress claim + payment automation layer. The timing is perfect.
Revenue model: Per-project or monthly subscription to builders at $199-$499/month. 200 builders x $300/month = $720K ARR. Expansion into bank/lender integrations for per-transaction revenue on construction draws.
The AI engineering, product, and infrastructure.
The domain expertise, industry trust, and first clients.
This is a co-founder search, not a job ad. I'm looking for someone who wants to own half of this company and build it together from day one.
Construction domain expertise. Industry network. First 10 pilot builders. Ongoing product direction for AU compliance and contract accuracy.
AI/full-stack engineering. Product design and build. Infrastructure and deployment. Market research already done.
We'll figure out the right structure together. What matters first is whether we're the right fit.
R&D Tax Incentive (43.5%), NSW MVP Ventures ($50K), Antler Australia ($260K), then Flying Fox / TEN13 / Blackbird seed round.
"The Security of Payment Act IS the moat. No US company will build for state-by-state SoP legislation, AS 2124, or AU retention rules. Whoever gets there first, wins."
Talk to volume builders (Metricon, Simonds, Rawson-type). Ask: "How do you currently submit progress claims? How long until you get paid? What does that delay cost you?" Lock in 3-5 pilot partners.
Upload a building contract (HIA or Master Builders template) + site photos. AI extracts milestones, generates a progress claim with evidence attached, sends to client/bank for approval. State-aware SoP compliance built in.
Real-world validation across residential projects. Iterate on edge cases: variations, retention, defect liability. Apply for R&D Tax Incentive and NSW MVP Ventures.
Add commercial subcontractor payment claims, retention tracking, defect liability management. Connect to banks/lenders for construction draw disbursement. Target 200 builders. Approach Antler or Flying Fox for seed.
Full coverage of NSW, VIC, QLD Security of Payment requirements. Bank/lender integrations for automated draw processing. Target Blackbird or Carthona for Series A path. $720K+ ARR target.
If you know construction payments, have connections in the building industry, and want to co-found something massive, I'd like to hear from you.
Thanks for reaching out. I'll get back to you within 24 hours. Looking forward to the conversation.