How to use Ask Buildra (AI Q&A) effectively

Ask Buildra is the AI question-and-answer feature that runs against your indexed plans, specs, RFIs, and submittals. The trick is not learning the feature — it is learning to ask the right questions. Here is what works.

Where to find it

Every project has an Ask page at /projects/<id>/ask. The top nav search bar also opens Ask Buildra in a side panel from anywhere in the project. You can ask the same question from either entry point — they share history.

What it can answer

Ask Buildra answers from your project's indexed content. That includes:

• Plan sheets (architectural, structural, MEP, civil).
• Spec sections that you have uploaded.
• RFI responses and submittal review comments.
• Decisions logged via voice mode or manually.
• Daily logs from the project.

It does not answer from the public internet, your other projects (by default), or your company-wide documents. The scope is intentional — you want answers grounded in this project.

Prompt patterns that work

The single best habit is to ask questions a person on the project would ask, not questions an AI demo would ask. Compare:

• Weak:“Tell me about the windows.”
• Strong:“What is the manufacturer and model of the windows on the south elevation? What is the U-value?”

Specific questions return specific answers with page citations. Vague questions return summaries that take you a step away from the source.

Tip: Always click the citation chip after the answer. Buildra opens the exact plan page or spec paragraph the answer came from, so you can verify in two seconds.

Reading the citations

Every answer is followed by 1–3 citations. Each citation includes the document name, the page, and a short excerpt. Click the citation to jump into the document at that page. If you ever see an answer with no citation, treat it with skepticism — it usually means the AI inferred something the source did not explicitly state.

What to do when an answer feels off

1. Click the citation. Read the source. Was the AI right, just unclear?
2. If the AI was wrong, click the thumbs down and enter the correct answer. Buildra logs this and learns project context over time.
3. Re-ask the question with more specificity, including a sheet number if you have one.
4. If still wrong, the source document is probably missing or scanned at low resolution. Re-upload and retry.

Sharing answers

Click the share icon on any answer to copy a permalink. The permalink shows the question, the answer, and the citations — useful to drop into an RFI response or email to an architect for confirmation.

Limits and fair use

Each plan has an AI query monthly allotment. Solo gets 50, Crew gets 250, Firm gets 1,000, Scale is unlimited. You see a counter in the Ask page header. When you bump against the cap, buy a query pack at /settings/subscription → Add-ons or upgrade.