Investigating the Role of Artificial Intelligence Technologies in the Construction Industry Using a Delphi-ANP-TOPSIS Hybrid MCDM Concept under a Fuzzy Environment

Abstract

The construction business is always changing, and with the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) technology it is undergoing substantial modifications in a variety of areas. The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the function of AI tools in the construction industry using a hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework based on the Delphi method, analytic network process (ANP), and Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) under a fuzzy scenario. The ANP framework offers a systematic approach to quantifying the relative importance of AI technologies based on expert opinions gathered during the Delphi process, whereas the fuzzy TOPSIS methodology is used to rank and select the most appropriate AI technologies for the construction industry. The final results from the ANP revealed that the technological factors are the most crucial, followed by the environmental factors, which highly influence the AI environment. In addition, TOPSIS identified robotics and automation as the best AI alternative among the three options, followed by building information modeling (BIM), whereas computer vision was the least preferred among the list. The proposed hybrid MCDM framework enables a comprehensive evaluation and selection process that takes into account the interdependencies between AI technologies and uncertainties in decision-making.