NEW YORK CITY, NY, July 23, 2026 – Cascade has raised $3.5 million to expand an AI system that tracks early project signals and helps architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) firms identify opportunities before formal requests for proposals (RFPs) are issued. Andreessen Horowitz Speedrun, Ada Ventures, Blitzscaling Ventures, Indico Capital, shuckerVC, G2C Ventures and Snowball VC participated in the funding round.
“Every firm we work with can point to a project they should have won but never even had a chance to see,” said Hannia Zia, co-founder and CEO of Cascade. “Cascade is built around the bottom line: find the right work early, understand where you have a real advantage, and turn that into revenue delivered.”
Cascade monitors bond filings, permits, capital plans, property transactions, earnings transcripts, budget announcements and public meeting minutes. The AI system analyzes these records to identify where projects are forming, the type of work involved and companies that may pursue them.
The company has signed AEC customers whose work includes projects at John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport, along with data centers and nuclear reactors.
Tim Johannesson, Principal at Smallwood, the architecture firm behind projects for the Four Seasons, the Ritz, Hyatt and many others, said: “A project broke ground a few blocks away from me. I’ve been in the industry for 30 years, I didn’t even know it was out for bid. Cascade has now helped us respond to and win more projects, including a recent $6M project, that I was only able to find through Cascade.”
The system scores projects against a firm’s capabilities to support bid decisions. It also searches relationships stored in Outlook and other business software to identify existing contacts connected to a potential pursuit. Cascade uses customer pursuit activity to refine which project signals it prioritizes. The system also evaluates which firms have relevant experience and identifies possible partners for joint bids.
“Cascade has become a valuable partner in how we review plans, organize project information, and identify opportunities more efficiently. The platform continues to improve, and a single successful project can deliver a return that exceeds the cost for years. We are pleased to have adopted the technology early and to be helping shape how AI can be used in the construction industry,” said Alan Ruth, President and CEO of S.A. Casey Construction.
“Hedge funds look at a crazy amount of data to predict stock movements,” said Joana Ferreira, co-founder and CTO of Cascade. “We use the same logic to predict construction projects.” Joana previously was an early engineer at one of the largest trading apps in the world.
“Business development in AEC has always run on relationships, timing and institutional memory,” said Sarah Sapone Hayes, director of strategy & innovation at FORGE Architecture, the San Francisco design firm behind The Battery SF, the VF Outdoor campus and the city’s first net zero energy office. “Cascade gives us a systematic way to see the opportunities that matter, a credible path into them, and far less manual work behind every pursuit.”
“Cascade helps us plan strategically ahead in the highly competitive AEC industry in NYC,” said Syed Irfan Raza, CFO at Munoz Engineering, which worked on LGA, Moynihan Train Hall and Cuomo Bridge. “The team delivers quickly, and they understand how this industry is built on relationships and trust.”
Cascade plans to use the funding to expand adoption and add more firms to its U.S. network. The company uses that network to identify potential bidding partners, regional contacts and teaming opportunities.
“Construction is one of the largest markets in the world, and the way firms find and win work has barely changed in decades,” said Marcus Segal, investor at Andreessen Horowitz Speedrun. “Cascade starts with a painful revenue problem. That is a powerful wedge into how construction work gets pursued, partnered on and delivered.”
“Hannia and Joana combine deep AI capability with genuine respect for how this industry actually works, and customers can feel that.” said Matt Penneycard at Ada Ventures. Scott Johnson at Blitzscaling Ventures added: “Cascade quickly grows their customer’s revenue, and the network effects and product led growth make it a high-potential Blitzscaler.”
Stephan de Moraes, managing general partner at Índico Capital Partners added: “In a $900 billion global industry, finding and winning the right projects has remained a manual, relationship-driven challenge for decades. Cascade is completely rewriting that playbook. Hannia and Joana have taken world-class AI capability and built a predictive engine that solves a massive revenue problem for the construction sector before a bid even exists. At Índico, we are thrilled to back Cascade as they transform how the built world is planned, pursued, and delivered.”
Source: Cascade
About Cascade
Cascade develops AI software for architecture, engineering and construction companies. Its software monitors public procurement sources and identifies projects that match customer services. The system also connects with business management and project software to support proposals and reporting. Cascade provides tools for bid reviews, project searches, compliance work and business development. The company serves architecture firms, engineering companies, contractors and other organizations pursuing public-sector projects. Cascade Intelligence Inc. was founded in 2025 and is headquartered in Dover, DE. Its founders previously worked on AI systems at Google, Amazon and other technology companies. Cascade focuses on bidding and proposal management for construction and engineering firms.