We’ve all heard the pitch about smart buildings — spaces that magically adjust your lighting, dial in the perfect temperature, and raise or lower shades without you lifting a finger. Sounds great, right?
But here’s the reality: most smart buildings aren’t anywhere close to that. Even smart buildings with fancy control systems are basically Frankensteins — a network for lights over here, HVAC doing its own thing over there, and shades and sensors on completely separate systems. Nothing actually talks to each other.
Why? Well, the hardware has been there for years. What’s been missing is the AI infrastructure in smart buildings to tie it all together.
How We Got Here: PoE Changes Everything
About ten years ago, MHT Technologies looked at how buildings were powered and basically said, “This is ridiculous.” Traditional high-voltage systems were inefficient, complicated, and frankly, stuck in the past.
Their solution? Power over Ethernet (PoE). Instead of running separate power and data lines, PoE sends both through a single low-voltage cable. That means simpler installation, real-time control over everything from lights to sensors, and way less energy waste. Plus, no more massive electrical runs snaking through your walls.
MHT’s Inspextor platform proved you could actually run an entire smart building this way — smarter, cleaner, more efficient. They created some of the first truly smart buildings where lights and shades actually responded to people and daylight, and you could track energy use in real time.
But even with all that innovation, something was still missing from these smart buildings.
The Brain: Meet aida™
Hardware can only take a smart building so far. What really turns a smart building into an intelligent one? AI-powered software.
That’s where Building AI Solutions comes in with aida™. They developed aida™, an AI platform that acts as the brain for all those connected systems in smart buildings. aida doesn’t just control the devices — it learns from them, predicts what’s needed, and orchestrates everything seamlessly.
Here’s what makes aida™ different: it works with any smart building system. Sure, aida™ integrates beautifully with MHT’s PoE setup, but it’s not exclusive. Got hardware from Molex or someone else? Need to configure with Cisco Spaces? No problem. aida™ can plug in and manage your whole smart building through one interface.
Smart Buildings That Actually Think
Traditional smart building systems are pretty basic when you think about it. They react to schedules, sensors, or someone hitting a switch. That’s it.
aida™ is different. The AI uses machine learning to understand how your smart building actually works — how people use different spaces, how sunlight changes throughout the day, where occupants go and when. Then aida™ makes smart adjustments on its own through AI-driven automation. Better lighting. Balanced energy use. More comfortable spaces. All without anyone micromanaging the smart building.
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The numbers from aida™ are pretty compelling:
- Smart building energy use drops by up to 30%
- Maintenance costs fall by up to 20% thanks to AI predictive insights
- Overall smart building operational savings hit up to 50% with AI-driven control
And because aida™ is cloud-based, you can scale these AI insights across your entire smart building portfolio. Try doing that with old-school systems.
Putting It All Together
MHT has been pushing the envelope on smart building power for years. Inspextor gave us the infrastructure — a PoE system that could deliver both power and intelligence. But aida is what finally completes the smart building puzzle.
Together, aida™ and Inspextor turn a bunch of disconnected devices into an actual smart building ecosystem — one that learns through AI, adapts, and gets smarter over time.
This is what the next generation of smart buildings actually looks like. Not just smart. Intelligent, powered by AI like aida™.
What’s Next for Smart Buildings
The future of smart buildings isn’t about cramming more sensors into your building or buying the latest gadgets. It’s about connecting everything through real AI intelligence. aida™ isn’t just another piece of software — it’s a fundamental shift in how smart buildings operate and respond to the people inside them.
If you’re still running on disconnected systems or controls from the Stone Age, it might be time to look at what AI-driven solutions like aida can actually do for your smart building. Reach out to Building AI Solutions and see what’s possible.