Expert-based AHP-cloud assessment finds average AI development in Yangtze River Delta construction cost management

An expert-based assessment reported in Scientific Reports found an overall “average” level of artificial intelligence development in construction cost management across China’s Yangtze River Delta, with a model score of 52.71. The regional assessment also identified substantial differences among the four constituent areas, with Shanghai and Zhejiang scoring significantly higher than Jiangsu and Anhui.

The case study used a PEST-O framework covering political, economic, social, technological and organizational conditions. According to the article abstract, the researchers combined the Analytic Hierarchy Process with a cloud model to analyze expert data. This was a methodological assessment rather than an experiment measuring the effects of AI tools on project costs, management performance or construction outcomes.

The abstract classified the political dimension as strongly supported, while the technological, organizational and social dimensions were rated “worse.” It identified organizational incapacity as the primary bottleneck within the model. The reported regional results also show an imbalance: Shanghai and Zhejiang significantly outperformed Jiangsu and Anhui in the assessed AI development level. These findings describe model-based comparisons within the Yangtze River Delta and do not establish why those differences occurred.

The authors state that the framework provides a quantitative diagnostic for policymakers and other stakeholders and can support differentiated measures for regions classified as leaders or laggards. However, the available evidence is limited to the published abstract and concerns one regional case analyzed through expert data and an integrated AHP-cloud approach. The reported results therefore should not be treated as a direct evaluation of AI performance in completed construction projects, nor as evidence that the framework has been validated outside the Yangtze River Delta.

Subject of Research: AHP-cloud assessment of AI development in construction cost management across China’s Yangtze River Delta

Article Title: Assessment of AI development level in construction cost management using AHP- cloud model: a case study of China’s Yangtze River Delta Region

Article References: Wang, R., Wang, E., Salleh, H., Yao, Z., & Xie, J. (2026). Assessment of AI development level in construction cost management using AHP- cloud model: a case study of China’s Yangtze River Delta Region. Scientific Reports. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-74769-w

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-026-74769-w

Keywords: artificial intelligence, construction cost management, Yangtze River Delta, AHP, cloud model, PEST-O analysis, expert assessment, organizational readiness, Assessment, development, level, construction