AI does not pour a slab or lay a wall. It helps with everything around the job: the scope of work in the quote, the materials list, the pre-construction condition report, the site meeting notes, the progress invoices.
AI helps masons with tasks such as “Write the scope of work for a masonry quote,” “Dictate the pre-construction condition report,” and “Get the list of materials to order.” Start with a single task, in Claude: allow 10 minutes the first time, and always review the result before you use it.
For each task: how it goes today, then with the tool. And the time it takes the first time.
Claude · On your phone: dictation and photos
TodayThe quote gets done in the evening, from memory, and a forgotten item, like soil removal or a lintel, comes out of your margin.
With ClaudeAn item-by-item scope of work the client can read, with what is included, what is not, and the points to confirm.
Wispr Flow · Dictation on your phone
TodayA crack at the neighbor’s or asphalt that was already damaged, not noted before you started, gets blamed on you at the end of the job.
With Wispr FlowA dated condition report, with photos, sent to the client before the first shovel hits the ground.
Claude · Excel file, in the conversation
TodayOne pallet of blocks too many and you’re stuck with it; one cubic meter of concrete short and the pour stops halfway.
With ClaudeAn order list sorted by category, with the calculation for each quantity to check before you call the supplier.
Also
Gemini Notebook · One notebook per project
The structural engineer’s exact specification, with the page of the drawing or the calculation sheet.
Granola · Mobile app
The decisions, openings, and dates for your scope, in a message to have confirmed in writing.
DeepL · Mobile app: voice and photo
The day’s instructions understood in their language, and a simple way to talk back and forth on the job site.
Claude · Word file, in the conversation
A complete, dated request, ready to send to city hall with the location map.
Claude · On your phone: dictation and photos
A clear message for the client, sent every Friday with the week’s photos.
Tiime · “Facturation” (Invoicing) tab
A clear progress invoice at each stage of the job, instead of a single invoice at the end.
What to check
A signed quote commits you and your ten-year builder’s liability insurance (mandatory in France): quantities, prices, and VAT stay yours. Foundations and rebar are decided with the soil report and the structural engineer, never on an assistant’s suggestion. Do not photograph any person or any of the client’s documents.
Write the scope of work for a masonry quoteClaude · On your phone: dictation and photosThe prompt to copy
You are helping me prepare the quote for [building a 20 m² addition in concrete block on a slab]. From my dictated notes and the photos, write the scope of work in job-site order: setup and protection, excavation and soil removal, foundations, slab, wall construction, bond beams and lintels, stucco, cleanup and demobilization. For each item: a description a homeowner can understand, the quantity and the unit, with no prices. Add the items I may have forgotten, marking them “to confirm,” and list separately what is not included: [soil report, structural design, framing, roofing, windows and doors]. End with the questions to ask the client. Do not make up any dimension, and do not suggest any footing size or reinforcement.
In Nova, “My path” starts from your level: one next step at a time.
The first moves, with free tools.
In your jobWrite the scope of work for a masonry quote
In your jobFind a detail in the drawings and the structural design
In your jobDictate the pre-construction condition report
For a team: everyone moves forward in their own job. You see the team’s progress, never one person’s activity.
On your phone, you dictate the site visit and attach the photos: it writes the scope of work for the quote, draws up the materials list showing its calculations, and prepares the request to city hall.
Recommended planFree to start. Pro, $20 per month ($17 per month if billed yearly), if you use it every day.
You dictate the pre-construction condition report standing on the job site: the text appears punctuated, in the email to the client.
Recommended planFree, $0: 1,000 words per week on phone, 2,000 on desktop. Then Pro, $15 per user per month ($12 if billed yearly).
One notebook per project, with the drawings, the structural design, and the product data sheets. It finds a note from the structural engineer and shows you the page.
Recommended planFree: 100 notebooks, 50 sources per notebook, 50 questions per day.
In a site meeting, the phone next to you takes the notes. You pull out what concerns the structural work.
Recommended planBasic, $0. Notes older than 30 days are visible only with Business, $14 per user per month.
To give instructions to a crew member who speaks another language: you dictate in English, and they read or listen to the translation on your phone.
Recommended planFree, €0: 50,000 characters per month. Individual, €7.49 per month, billed yearly, so your texts are not used for training.
Unlimited quotes, deposit invoices, and progress invoices, in the electronic invoice format, and your accountant sees the same documents you do. Tiime doesn’t write for you.
Recommended planFree, €0: unlimited quotes and invoices. To send the invoice from Tiime and send reminders in one click: Initial, €9.99 per month, excl. tax, billed yearly (€119.88).
Prices taken from the vendors’ official pages, dated on each tool page. These subscriptions are not included in Nova. Brands are named to identify the tools. No affiliation.
Nova recommends 6 to start with: Claude, Wispr Flow, Gemini Notebook, Granola, DeepL, and Tiime. All of them can be used for free to get started.
On your phone, you dictate the site visit and attach the photos: it writes the scope of work for the quote, draws up the materials list showing its calculations, and prepares the request to city hall. The plan to choose: Free to start. Pro, $20 per month ($17 per month if billed yearly), if you use it every day.
With “Write the scope of work for a masonry quote,” in Claude (on your phone: dictation and photos). Allow 10 minutes the first time. An item-by-item scope of work the client can read, with what is included, what is not, and the points to confirm.
No. Nova is software, not an accredited training provider: it issues no diploma or certification. It costs €19 per month for one person, and €129 per month for a team of up to ten people.