IISc Bengaluru and Japanese firm ink deal to fix urban data gaps with AI

Bengaluru: ONESTRUCTION Inc, a Japan-based construction technology company, and DataKaveri Systems, the commercial arm of IISc Bengaluru's Centre of Data for Public Good, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on urban and built environment data exchange.

The partnership will combine the capabilities of both entities to support urban planners with high-quality, accessible and interoperable data for better decision-making.

Construction and infrastructure data remains among the least digitised and most fragmented datasets in urban environments globally.

While openBIM standards such as IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) have advanced data interoperability within construction project lifecycles, the infrastructure to govern, exchange and use that data at the city and national scale has remained underdeveloped. Much of this data, including floor plans, utility layouts and asset histories, is lost or inaccessible once a project closes.

The MoU was signed at IISc Bengaluru in the presence of representatives from Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and India's Ministry of External Affairs, on the sidelines of the inaugural Japan-India AI Strategic Dialogue, a bilateral initiative to advance cooperation in artificial intelligence and data infrastructure.

Under the MoU, the two entities will explore integrating open BIM-based construction data with the IUDX platform, collaborate on AI use cases for smart city and urban infrastructure scenarios, and jointly pursue relevant bilateral funding opportunities.