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I share an honest solo update on what I'm seeing across UK surveying as AI adoption accelerates and the RICS AI standard lands in practice. I dig into the real world impact on enquiries, complaints, risk, and how Surveyors UK is building tools and community support to help surveyors respond with confidence.

• why AI attention spikes this year across surveying and the built environment
• what the RICS AI standard means for everyday practice and evidence
• the rise in long pre instruction queries and the admin burden on SMEs
• clients uploading survey reports into chatbots and the knock on effect on complaints
• a practical approach to de escalating complaints by speaking to clients
• what AI agents are, how they differ from chatbots, and why permissions matter
• shadow AI risks when staff use free tools or vendor software includes AI features
• why claims may follow complaints and why you cannot fix records retrospectively
• how Surveyors UK firm memberships work, including the referral network and directory
• podcast growth, sponsorship options, and how reviews help the show reach more people
• why we care about the profession and how surveyors can be ambassadors

If you enjoy the podcast, could you please provide me some form of review? The easiest thing is just to send me a message on LinkedIn, let me know what you'd like to say about the podcast, if you're happy for me to share it, or send me an email - nina@surveyors-uk.com

If you want to connect with surveyors across the UK and keep up with the profession, join The Surveying Room. It is free to join and open to all types of surveyors, students, and professionals who work with them. Surveyors UK & The Surveying Room

Connect with me - Nina Young on LinkedIn

Ever thought, “Can’t AI just do this bit for me?”

In this episode of This Is Surveying, Nina Young talks to Will Doyle, former quantity surveyor and founder of Gather, about AI, automation and the changing role of the QS.

Will shares how a site manager used AI to make sense of months of project information in just a few clicks, while they explore poor site records, AI “slop”, professional judgement and why surveyors still need to understand the fundamentals.

If AI takes away more of the repetitive work, what happens to the experience surveyors need to build?

What We Cover

• Will's route into quantity surveying
• His accidental career in rail with Balfour Beatty
• How the QS role has changed
• AI and automation in quantity surveying
• The risks of relying on AI without experience
• Professional judgement and the "judgement paradox"
• Why human skills still matter
• The story behind Gather
• Why good records matter when projects go wrong
• Knowledge, culture and discipline
• AI, data and construction project management
• The future of work in surveying and construction

Guest Links

• Will Doyle - https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-doyle-gather/
• Gather - https://www.gatherinsights.com/

Useful Links

• The AI QS Newsletter - https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-ai-qs-7354050754480906242/

Guest Bio

Will Doyle is a former quantity surveyor and the founder of Gather, a platform focused on helping construction and infrastructure teams capture better project records. Will began his career in rail after studying quantity surveying at Loughborough, working across the UK and internationally before moving into technology and founding Gather. Today, Gather works with organisations across infrastructure, including nuclear, rail, highways, energy and utilities, with thousands of projects using the platform. Will also writes and speaks regularly about AI, quantity surveying, construction technology and how the profession is changing.

If you want to connect with surveyors across the UK and keep up with the profession, join The Surveying Room. It is free to join and open to all types of surveyors, students, and professionals who work with them. Surveyors UK & The Surveying Room

Connect with me - Nina Young on LinkedIn

This episode includes discussion of suicide and difficult experiences from Dan's childhood. Please take care while listening, particularly if these subjects may be difficult for you.

What happens when a difficult past becomes part of what makes you better at surveying?

Dan Knowles, founder and managing director of Websters Surveyors, shares the very unconventional path that brought him into surveying, from growing up in difficult circumstances and experiencing homelessness to building a growing residential surveying firm. He also opens up about aphantasia, the way it shapes how he thinks and works, and why he sees it as a “secret power”. We then get into AI, automation and the future of surveying, including how Websters is using technology to cut repetitive admin while keeping professional judgement firmly in the hands of surveyors.

A very honest conversation about resilience, surveying, AI and building a firm without losing sight of quality.

What We Cover

• Dan's route from a law degree into surveying
• His move from commercial to residential surveying
• The human side of residential property work
• Childhood, homelessness and resilience
• Aphantasia and how it affects memory and visualisation
• Designing information around the client journey
• AI and automation within a surveying firm
• APIs, desktop research and property data
• The limits of AI when assessing property defects
• AI-generated questions from clients
• How people are increasingly using AI to find surveyors
• Recruitment, training and building a strong surveying culture

Guest Links

• Dan Knowles - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-knowles-frics-821bbb22/
• Websters Surveyors - https://websterssurveyors.co.uk/

Useful Links

• Samaritans - https://www.samaritans.org/

Guest Bio

Dan Knowles is the founder and managing director of Websters Surveyors. He is a chartered surveyor, RICS registered valuer and RICS expert panel member, with a career spanning commercial and residential surveying. After initially qualifying as a commercial surveyor, Dan moved into residential surveying and has since built Websters Surveyors into a growing firm working across residential surveys, valuations, leasehold reform and compulsory purchase work. He is particularly interested in technology and innovation, and has developed a range of AI and automation tools within the business to reduce repetitive administration and improve the client journey. Dan is also passionate about training, company culture and maintaining quality as the firm grows.

If you want to connect with surveyors across the UK and keep up with the profession, join The Surveying Room. It is free to join and open to all types of surveyors, students, and professionals who work with them. Surveyors UK & The Surveying Room

Connect with me - Nina Young on LinkedIn