- 1Restoration
Walk a job on video and let AI turn what's in your head into a written process
In Cleanfax this week, James Hatfield, chief revenue officer at the video communication company LiveSwitch, who ran painting and power washing crews for years, gives cleaning and restoration owners a plain take on AI. Before recommending anything, he asks what a company already uses, why, and what the owner wants a new tool to do. He points to small wins, like handing the typing of work orders to AI. His advice for 20 or 30 year veterans: walk a job on video and talk through each step, so AI has the raw material to document processes that today live only in the owner's head. That record matters if you ever want a real vacation or to sell the company. He also notes that software you already pay for may have AI built in.
Source: Cleanfax, "Make Technology Earn Its Keep" (Oct. 19)
Read the source →What to try: Pick one job type you know cold, like a standard water loss setup. Record a 10 minute phone video walking it and saying each step out loud. Give the recording, or its transcript, to the AI tool you already use and ask for a step by step checklist. Have your lead tech mark it up before it becomes your written procedure. Keep customer faces, addresses, and paperwork out of the video.
- 2Remodeling
A Kansas remodeler records sales calls and sends most proposals within a day
In a JobTread episode posted October 14, Steven Ross of Renovating KC, a 35 person design and remodel firm in Lenexa, Kansas, explained his rule: automate the obvious, personalize everything else. His team records almost every meeting, with customers and internally, and tells people it's being recorded. The transcript goes to Claude, which has been set up with what their proposals should look like, and the draft goes into JobTread. Ross reviews it and sends it. He says 95% of his proposals go out within 24 hours. Budgets work the same way: transcripts, designs, floor plans, and selections go in, and a project manager reviews the draft estimate before it goes out.
Read the source →What to try: Pick one sales appointment this month. Ask the homeowner up front if you can record so nothing gets missed, and only record if they agree, since some states require everyone's consent. Give the transcript and one of your past proposals to the AI tool you already use, ask for a first draft, and check every line, quantity, and price before it goes to the customer.
- 3Software
Cotality shows an AI help assistant in DASH and AI floor plans in Mitigate
Cotality's restoration product team walked users through its fourth quarter updates in a webinar on October 14, now available on demand. Highlights include Aly, an AI help assistant built into DASH that is meant to get you the right answer or connect you with the right person with fewer transfers, and AI built into LiDAR scanning in Mitigate so open concept floor plans come out true to form, with spaces detected and named automatically. Mitigate can also now use your DASH equipment inventory in the field to document equipment use, and the app adds automatic background uploads. The page doesn't say when each feature reaches every account.
Source: Cotality, "What's new in Cotality Restoration? Q4 2026" (Oct. 14)
Read the source →What to try: If you run DASH or Mitigate, watch the recording this month and ask your Cotality rep which of these features are turned on for your account. Test the LiDAR floor plan on one open concept job and check the room names and measurements against your own before they go into an estimate.
- 4Home services
Gmail on your phone can now answer questions about your inbox out loud
Google is rolling out Gmail Live to paid Google Workspace accounts on Android and iPhone. You tap Live in the Gmail search bar, ask a question out loud, such as the order status from a supplier, and hear an answer pulled from your email. Each answer shows a card with the email it came from, and you can pick the voice. It is on by default for organizations with Gemini in Workspace, covers Business Starter, Standard, and Plus among other plans, and for now works only for US users with their language set to English (US). The rollout started October 15 and can take up to 15 days to reach everyone.
Source: Google Workspace Updates, "Gmail Live is rolling out to paid Workspace users" (Oct. 15)
Read the source →What to try: Once Live shows up in your Gmail app, try it from the truck while you're parked: ask for a supplier's order status or a detail from a customer's last email. Tap the source card to confirm the email before you act on the answer, and don't use it while driving.
- 5Small business
ChatGPT can now build slide decks you can edit together and export to PowerPoint
OpenAI started rolling out ChatGPT Slides on October 16. You can start a presentation from a conversation, files, or an outline, or share an example deck so it follows your style and layout. You can edit text, images, shapes, and charts yourself or ask ChatGPT to make changes, invite teammates to edit the same deck at the same time, and present straight from ChatGPT. On the web, decks export to PowerPoint, PDF, or Google Slides. It is rolling out to eligible Pro, Business, and Enterprise users who have access to Space, on the web and in the desktop app. To start, you ask ChatGPT in Work to create a presentation in Space.
Source: OpenAI, "Create and collaborate on slides in ChatGPT" (Oct. 16)
Read the source →What to try: If your ChatGPT plan has Slides, give it the notes and photos from one finished job and ask for a short before and after deck for your next homeowner meeting or crew training. Export it to PowerPoint, check every number and claim, and get the homeowner's OK before you show photos of their house to anyone else.
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https://agenticsolutions.biz/brief/2026-10-20