Catching up at Autodesk U: A Conversation with Elliot Christiansen, SVP of Operations at Cleveland Construction

How Cleveland Construction is Using AI to Empower Their Teams

An Autodesk University 2025 Interview with Elliot Christiansen, SVP of Operations at Cleveland Construction

At Autodesk University 2025 in Nashville, thousands of innovators came together to explore how AI, robotics, and connected data are transforming the way we design and build. While at the conference, we caught up with customer Elliot Christiansen, Senior Vice President of Operations at Cleveland Construction, Inc., to hear his take on how AI is transforming the industry.

Cleveland Construction, a national commercial construction manager with over 40 years of experience, is known for embracing technology to drive efficiency and reduce risk. In this interview with Tyler Matheny of Trunk Tools, Elliot shares how his team is leveraging Autodesk Construction Cloud together with Trunk Tools’ AI-powered platform to supercharge field productivity, empower younger professionals, and minimize risk across complex projects.

Tyler Matheny (Trunk Tools):
We’re wrapping up a great conference. As always, AI in construction has been the hottest topic. From your perspective, what really cut through the noise this week? What’s got you excited about AI in construction?

Elliot Christiansen (Cleveland Construction):
You know, what stood out to me is that all the contractors here are heavily investing in AI. The big theme is that people have realized it’s not about replacing employees. Instead, it’s about setting them up for success—making them more efficient, giving them more time to focus on what really matters, like actually building the project and delivering value.

Tyler:
Absolutely. And Cleveland Construction has gone a step further—you’ve even changed how you’re using Autodesk so Trunk Tools can help deploy that intelligence to your team and make them even more powerful. What have you done on that front?

Elliot:
One of the things we did was adjust Autodesk settings so everything in cost management is automatically saved back into our files. That means Trunk Tools can search those files. Now if you ask a question like “Who has XYZ?” the system can pull that information up instantly.

Tyler:
That’s awesome. So that’s what you’re doing today—what about looking ahead? What’s got you excited about the future of construction?

Elliot:
What excites me most is how Trunk Tools can level the playing field. For example, someone fresh out of college, with no real-world experience, can instantly operate as if they’ve got five years under their belt. That’s powerful. It also helps reduce risk, because you’re giving people better guidance and decision-making support right away.

Tyler:
That’s huge. Well, we really appreciate you hanging out with us today, Elliot. Enjoy the rest of your time here in Nashville. And as always, if anyone has questions about what Trunk Tools can do for their team, just let us know.

Conclusion

Cleveland Construction’s adoption of Trunk Tools illustrates the next era of building—where AI doesn’t replace people, but empowers them to work smarter, faster, and safer.

If you’re ready to see how Trunk Tools can help your team eliminate data bottlenecks, reduce risk, and supercharge productivity, we’d love to show you.