Jacksonville is implementing artificial intelligence technology to accelerate its building permit review process through a new Express Lane permitting initiative designed to address delays that cost developers millions of dollars. The city has partnered with SwiftBuild.ai, a company that uses AI infrastructure to help municipalities review construction plans faster while maintaining human oversight for final decisions. Sabrina Dugan, managing partner of SwiftBuild.ai, said the technology can streamline submissions and feedback through an online system.
“Keeping certain items within a review process for human determination… human in the loop, is essential,” Dugan said. The Express Lane permitting initiative combines standardized operating procedures, clearer applicant checklists, and AI tools that can surface code-related comments quickly while preserving human decision-making authority. Dugan explained that the system addresses compliance issues across multiple areas including accessibility and resilience factors like how structures perform during floods, hurricanes, and other disasters.
“Permitting, it comes back to compliance,” Dugan said, describing accessibility as one part of a broader code review process. SwiftBuild.ai originated as a University of Florida project after Dugan noticed accessibility barriers affecting a friend’s route to class, eventually expanding from that accessibility project to a city-scale tool. The company now works with municipalities to address permitting bottlenecks that affect the entire construction industry.
The financial impact of permitting delays extends beyond developers to consumers purchasing new homes, according to Dugan. “Right now, holding costs are insane for developers, which are then passed along to the consumer,” she said. She cited an example from Hernando County where one developer estimated losing 132 days and $16.9 million in holding costs due to permitting delays, demonstrating how review timeframes directly affect project economics.
Dugan argued that even residents who never file permits feel the impact because delays add costs across the construction chain. Reducing review time can mean meaningful savings for builders, trades, and ultimately families moving into homes, she explained. The SwiftBuild.ai system aims to help cities review plans faster and more consistently while ensuring human reviewers retain control over final approval decisions.
Jacksonville’s building boom has forced City Hall and the development community to rethink critical steps in the permitting process. The Express Lane initiative represents the city’s response to growing pressure from increased construction activity that has strained traditional review systems. The AI-powered approach allows for quicker identification of code-related issues while maintaining the human expertise necessary for complex regulatory decisions.
The SwiftBuild.ai technology focuses on surfacing relevant code comments quickly during the initial review phase, potentially reducing the back-and-forth communications that typically extend permitting timelines. This approach addresses compliance requirements across multiple regulatory areas while preserving the human judgment essential for nuanced planning decisions. The system’s design ensures that artificial intelligence enhances rather than replaces human expertise in the permitting process.