Mar 27, 2025

Press Release: BrightAI and Latham Bring AI Innovation to the Pool Industry

BrightAI and Latham, The Pool Company, have partnered to launch Measure by Latham Pools, an AI-powered scanning system that transforms how pool liners and covers are measured, quoted, and ordered. By eliminating manual tape measurements and reducing errors, Measure dramatically improves speed, accuracy, and customer satisfaction—setting a new benchmark for the pool industry.

Full press release follows below.

Press Release

BrightAI and Latham, The Pool Company, Partner to Bring AI-Powered Innovation to Pool Manufacturing

Measure by Latham Pools is powered by BrightAI’s technology to transform how pool liners and covers are measured, quoted, and ordered
AI-driven scanning eliminates manual measurement errors, accelerating order fulfillment and reducing production delays
The partnership brings automation and intelligence to pool manufacturing, enabling seamless ordering, faster installations, and improved customer satisfaction

San Francisco, California, United States – WEBWIRE – Thursday, March 27, 2025

BrightAI, a company bringing AI to the physical world to drive smarter, more efficient cities and industries, and Latham Group, Inc. (“Latham” or “the Company”) (Nasdaq: SWIM), the largest designer, manufacturer, and marketer of in-ground residential swimming pools in North America, Australia, and New Zealand, have partnered to create Measure by Latham Pools, an AI-powered measurement technology that transforms how pool liners and covers are measured, manufactured, and installed.

BrightAI is redefining how industries interact with the physical world, replacing legacy manual processes with real-time AI-driven intelligence. By optimizing industrial infrastructure and streamlining manufacturing, BrightAI delivers efficiency at scale. Now, BrightAI is bringing that same innovation to pool manufacturing.

No two pools are exactly alike, making precise measurements essential to ensuring a perfect fit. Yet, for decades, builders have relied on manual tape measurements and hand-drawn sketches—a time and labor-intensive process vulnerable to errors. Even the smallest miscalculation can result in costly rework, production delays, and frustrated customers. With every pool having unique dimensions and structural features, builders and manufacturers often face back-and-forth verification, creating bottlenecks that slow down the entire order-to-installation process.

BrightAI and Latham share a vision to digitize this process, eliminating inefficiencies and bringing AI-driven precision to pool measurement and manufacturing. By leveraging BrightAI’s AI-powered measurement system, Measure ensures accuracy the first time, streamlining workflows and cutting production timelines. The Measure system consists of:

M1 Scanner equipped with lasers to capture precise pool dimensions and structural details in real time
An iPad Air® running the Measure app for real-time data processing
A tripod for stable, secure setup in the field

Once measurements are captured using laser scanning technology, the data is automatically uploaded to Latham’s Builder Management Portal, enabling real-time drawings, accuracy verification, and streamlined quote and order processing. The laser scanning technology reduces the need for two-person crews at a pool site, allowing builders to measure with a single technician and helping dealers process orders faster—cutting manufacturing timelines from weeks to days.

Our partnership with Latham is a perfect example of how AI can transform industries that have long relied on manual processes,” said Alex Hawkinson, Founder and CEO of BrightAI.
“By integrating our AI, Latham has been able to digitize the pool industry and replace manual processes with real-time precision. Fewer mistakes result in fewer remakes, accelerating production and improving overall efficiency. This is exactly what BrightAI was built for—bringing AI into the physical world to solve complex industry challenges and drive real business impact.

The system has already delivered significant performance improvements, making pool manufacturing faster, more precise, and more scalable:

5x Faster Turnaround Times: AI automation reduces measurement time from days to minutes, improving workflow efficiency
Increased Accuracy & Fewer Errors: AI-driven precision eliminates costly rework and delays
Lower Labor Costs & Higher Productivity: Builders can measure with a single technician, rather than relying on highly paid, specialized crews
Seamless Manufacturing & Ordering Integration: Pool liners and covers are produced faster and more accurately, ensuring on-time delivery and installation

Beyond an efficiency upgrade, this is a category-defining transformation for the pool industry,” said Scott Rajeski, President and CEO of Latham Pool.
“With BrightAI’s technology, we’re digitizing a process that has remained manual for decades—bringing speed, accuracy, and automation to pool manufacturing. We see a future where pool technicians no longer need a measuring tape at the job site.

Latham plans to scale its AI-powered measurement technology across operations, modernizing the pool measurement process on an industry-wide scale. This expansion aims to set a new benchmark for precision, efficiency, and customer satisfaction in the pool industry.

For more information about BrightAI, please visit https://www.bright.ai.

About BrightAI

Our solutions serve industries such as water, power, gas compression, pest control, HVAC, and manufacturing—helping service providers and asset owners boost efficiency, minimize downtime, and anticipate emerging challenges. By transforming complex data into actionable intelligence, BrightAI is redefining how essential services are delivered and evolved.

About Latham Group, Inc.

Latham Group, Inc. [NASDAQ: SWIM], headquartered in Latham, NY, is the largest designer, manufacturer, and marketer of in-ground residential swimming pools in North America, Australia, and New Zealand. Latham has a coast-to-coast operations platform of over 2,000 employees across 30 facilities.

Original press release available on WEBWIRE.

Nov 19, 2024

Press Release: BrightAI Launches Stateful OS to Modernize U.S. Infrastructure

For too long, America’s infrastructure has been stuck in a reactive cycle—waiting until the damage is done before springing into action. At BrightAI, we’re breaking that cycle.

Today, our team is excited to launch Stateful OS, an AI-powered platform transforming how infrastructure is managed. With over 250,000 AI endpoints deployed across 25,000 sites (more sites than Starbucks stores in the U.S), we’re equipping blue-collar workforces with real-time insights to spot and address risks before they escalate. From water and power to utilities, we’re empowering teams to take a proactive stance that keeps critical systems resilient, efficient, and ready for the future.

BrightAI has deployed over 250,000 sensors and achieved $80 million in revenue—all while staying in stealth mode and without raising outside capital. Until now. Today, we’re emerging from stealth with a $15 million seed round funded entirely by Upfront Ventures.

Full press release follows below.

Press Release

BrightAI Unveils Stateful OS, a Platform Leveraging Multimodal AI to Fix America’s Pipes, Sewers and Powerlines

The platform has over 250,000 AI endpoints deployed across 25,000+ locations, serving critical industries such as water management, energy, utilities, and manufacturing
Team brings experience in AI, IoT and autonomous systems from brands including SmartThings, Rivian, and Meta
Now, the company is taking on VC dollars and is announcing $15M in Series Seed funding led by Upfront Ventures, to accelerate the growth of the platform

San Francisco, California, United States – WEBWIRE – Tuesday, November 19, 2024

BrightAI, a leader in AI-driven solutions for critical infrastructure, today announced the launch of Stateful OS, its advanced AI platform designed to enhance productivity, resilience, and sustainability for infrastructure operators. The launch follows a recent seed funding round that will support BrightAI’s plans to extend the platform’s reach across key industries.

Traditional infrastructure maintenance is inefficient and reactive, relying on routine visits and manual checks to identify problems. With 50% to 80% of operations costs spent on labor and truck rolls, many organizations are forced to assess infrastructure conditions without real-time visibility into potential risks. This lack of comprehensive data leads to costly failures, such as power outages, water main breaks, and gas leaks, that could have been prevented with proactive management.

BrightAI’s Stateful OS platform offers blue-collar industries a forward-looking approach, enabling operators to move from reactive to proactive decision-making, and is purpose-built to serve industries including critical services, water, energy, transportation, construction, power, pest control, and manufacturing.

With over 250,000 active AI endpoints and 25,000 AI locations—deployed at more sites than Starbucks stores in the U.S.—Stateful OS captures exclusive, real-time data that no other system can access. This data fuels multimodal AI models that detect infrastructure flaws before they escalate into catastrophes. By allowing workers to act at the speed of machines, the platform equips them with the equivalent of 30 years of master technician experience on their first day, helping to prevent failures, reduce costs, and enhance operational resilience.

Stateful OS delivers a comprehensive set of capabilities, such as:

Asset & Site Visibility: Real-time insights through 24/7 monitoring, diagnostics, and automated dispatch, offering continuous visibility into infrastructure conditions.
Workforce Wearable Copilot: AI-powered field reporting and guidance, supported by a comprehensive operations knowledge graph, allowing workers to make real-time decisions in the field.
Inspection Autonomy: Autonomous robotics & drone systems that automate complex, dangerous, and repetitive tasks, increasing both inspection frequency and accuracy while reducing risk.

A leadership team with proven expertise in AI, IoT, and automation is driving this transformation. BrightAI’s founder and CEO, Alex Hawkinson, previously founded SmartThings, an IOT platform powering over 1 billion smart home devices that was sold to Samsung in 2014. He’s built a team of industry veterans, including Kiran Bharwani, BrightAI’s Chief Technology Officer, who developed Rivian’s autonomous driving platform from inception to IPO, and executing on the $1 billion Amazon delivery EV project. The leadership team also brings experience from Meta, Microsoft, and Frontdoor.

The physical graph has always been my long term vision to digitize the physical world. SmartThings focused on connecting millions of homes, while BrightAI is focused on outside of homes, solving for our critical infrastructure that human civilization relies on, from the water we drink to the power we consume. Our aging infrastructure is failing, and BrightAI will fundamentally change how it’s managed and maintained,” said Alex Hawkinson, Founder & CEO of BrightAI.
“With Stateful OS, we’re not just improving efficiency; we’re enabling a shift towards data-driven, sustainable infrastructure management. We’ve partnered with our initial customers to understand their roadblocks and ensure our platform can alleviate them, and now we’re ready to expand to improve infrastructure across industries.

In partnership with leading private equity firms in infrastructure, BrightAI is transforming six major industries and impacting tens of millions of consumers and businesses. Now, to further accelerate the development of its platform and grow its customer base, BrightAI recently secured $15 million in Series Seed funding led by Upfront Ventures.

One example of BrightAI’s impact can be seen in its partnership with Azuria Water Solutions, an early adopter of Stateful OS. Traditional methods of pipeline inspection relied on subjective, manual assessments, which can lead to costly errors.

BrightAI is building autonomous systems for infrastructure inspections and operations, and Azuria will deploy these robotic systems equipped with multimodal AI sensors, which will collect real-time data processed through BrightAI’s Stateful OS platform. These sensors will provide exclusive data that no other solution can access, which will enable Azuria to make faster, more precise decisions. Azuria expects substantial improvements in quality and job satisfaction. Through automated data collection, coding and greater accuracy through AI-driven precision, Azuria expects to reduce errors in measurements and cutting processes.

Technology helps yield better results and makes work more enjoyable. We’re working to supplement difficult and repetitive work that can pose safety risks with robots, so our people can focus on higher-value tasks,” said Rob Tullman, CEO of Azuria.
“We are not shrinking as a result of this; we’re growing. BrightAI’s solutions will allow us to operate smarter, faster, and more efficiently.

For more information about BrightAI, please visit https://www.bright.ai.

About BrightAI:

BrightAI is a category-defining infrastructure AI company on a mission to transform global infrastructure from reactive to proactive management, setting a new standard in resilience and sustainability. With its Stateful OS platform, BrightAI enables organizations to gather real-time data, see the unseen, and understand the true state of their infrastructure with unprecedented efficiency. The company’s offerings include a comprehensive infrastructure AI platform and a vertical application stack that delivers sector-specific AI monitoring, diagnostics, and autonomous systems for managing infrastructure health.

Founded by AI pioneers and infrastructure experts, BrightAI supports industrial and infrastructure segments globally, including large service providers, asset owners, and government agencies in sectors such as water, power, gas, renewable energy, transportation, waste management, pest control, HVAC, and critical home services. By leveraging cutting-edge AI technology, BrightAI is setting new standards for infrastructure management and maintenance, paving the way for smarter, more efficient cities and industries.

Original press release available on WEBWIRE.

Dec 18, 2023

BrightAI and Pelsis Launch Next-Gen AI Flylights Revolutionizing Pest Control

BrightAI and Pelsis joined forces in a multi-year partnership to infuse artificial intelligence into Pelsis’s highly successful flylight product lines, beginning with the popular Cobra LED model previewed in October 2023 at PestWorld in Honolulu, Hawaii. This launch represents a giant leap forward for intelligent pest control, especially for pest control operator sustainability and food & pharmaceutical safety. Powered by BrightAI’s infrastructure AI platform, the new AI flylights have advanced multimodal AI models for automated insect counting, size classification, real-time alerts, and audit analytics.

BrightAI, a trailblazing Infrastructure AI platform innovator, launched its strategic partnership with Pelsis, leading global pest control manufacturer and distributor, at the PestWorld conference. This partnership debuts the next-gen flying insect monitoring technology, combining the market leading Cobra LED insect flylight with automated insect counting and size classification insights through Pelsis’s intelligent pest platform powered by BrightAI’s “virtual master tech” platform. The fusion of cutting-edge AI technology and industry expertise promises to redefine the way we approach pest management, emphasizing early detection, real-time monitoring, and a proactive, sustainable strategy towards less chemical usage. Stay tuned as we usher in a new era in intelligent pest control.

A New Era in AI-Powered Pest Control

“Our partnership with Pelsis marks a significant turning point in the world of pest control. Traditionally, insect monitoring is a manual process, demanding valuable time and effort. Technicians climb up ladders and manually inspect from 25-250 flylights at each site, tallying the number of insects and assessing glueboard conditions. However, with routine service visits, often the discoveries come too late, resulting in costly infestations, factory shutdowns and increased chemical usage”, explained Nancy Li, EVP Growth & Strategy at BrightAI. “Pelsis Digital brings AI into the mix, transforming this process, reducing safety risks in the food and pharmaceutical industries, minimizing damage to brand reputation, and empowering pest management professionals to provide a more efficient, data-driven service.”

24/7 Pest Monitoring with Virtual Master Tech

Imagine having a virtual master technician at every food and pharma location, tirelessly working around the clock. The new AI insect flylight does just that. It acts as an ever-vigilant monitor, sending alerts when insect counts hit a customizable threshold. This not only gives customers peace of mind but also allows pest management professionals to intervene early, preventing pest activity from turning into full-blown infestations.

Leading Flylight Product, Upgraded with AI: Equipped with a high-res camera and AI sensors, this flylight provides 24/7 real-time monitoring of flying insect activity. Routine insect counting truck rolls become a thing of the past, as notifications guide technicians to the exact time and place for glue board checks.
Better-than-Human AI Models: The new AI flylights incorporate advanced multimodal AI models with extensive training and testing and proven to perform better-than-human automatic insect counting and size classification, which provides a good signal for potential root causes and remediations. BrightAI’s advanced multimodal AI technology delivers time-sequenced algorithms to increase counting accuracy particularly on crowded glue boards.

Early Infestation Detection & Proactive Service Alerts: The Pelsis Digital mobile app and online portal, included with the monitoring subscription, provide real-time reporting of flying insect activity while delivering insect count and size categorization, UV source replacement analysis, and temperature and humidity monitoring.
Digital Audit Reporting & Analytics: The Pelsis Digital portal provides immediate and accurate data for trend analysis and auditing needs, effectively reducing the amount of paperwork. The data can seamlessly integrate into existing pest management systems through Pelsis Integration APIs.

The Future of Pest Control

Commenting on the new product launch in their recent press release, Alex Ashmore, Pelsis Group CEO, said: “We’re delighted to showcase Pelsis’ commitment to driving new standards in pest management best practice, by launching our market leading digital insect light trap. The benefits of this intelligent product fit squarely within Pelsis’ vision to help move the sector to a more sustainable way of working alongside nature and our environment, while protecting public health.”

About Pelsis

Pelsis’ vision is to develop sustainable and innovative solutions, providing peace of mind and protecting public health, while working in harmony with nature. Their leading commercial and retail brands deliver innovative pest management and garden care products to a global customer base of more than 4,500. Pelsis employs more than 650 people across 14 sites in the UK, mainland Europe, USA and India, and their international team offers customer service, sales, technical and account support in more than 14 languages.
To learn more about Pelsis, visit pelsis.com.

About BrightAI

BrightAI is transforming essential services with Physical AI, enabling proactive, AI-powered operations. Built on our Stateful platform, BrightAI empowers operators of critical infrastructure to collect and connect data in real time, uncovering hidden insights and enabling smarter, faster decision-making. Stateful integrates multimodal data from sensors, wearables, and autonomous systems to deliver predictive diagnostics, automated workflows, and intelligent operational support. Our solutions serve industries such as water, power, gas compression, pest control, HVAC, and manufacturing—helping service providers and asset owners boost efficiency, minimize downtime, and anticipate emerging challenges. By transforming complex data into actionable intelligence, BrightAI is redefining how essential services are delivered and evolved.

Apr 5, 2023

Curiosity & Connection: The BrightAI Team Takes On Tampa

At BrightAI, it’s no secret our people are our best assets, and our teamwork produces truly extraordinary innovations.

However, in-person collaborations have been few and far between for several years due to the coronavirus pandemic.

That’s what makes our recent company-wide outing to Tampa, Florida even more special and meaningful. We are confident that there will be a lasting “Tampa influence” on BrightAI’s future.

More than three dozen team members from across the country traveled to Florida for this incredible, multi-day opportunity to meet and connect with each other face to face, experience the local culture, workshop new ideas and much more.

Day 1: Historic Ybor City & Bowling

While January is typically the coldest month of the year in Tampa, temperatures hovered in the 60s and 70s for most of our trip—which is prime shorts weather for a large group of team members who came from shoveling snow in Minnesota the day before!

After checking into our hotel, we made our way to historic Ybor City—a vibrant Latin district known for its boutiques, vintage shops, Cuban restaurants and, yes, cigars!

We took in our first sightseeing adventure aboard Tampa’s streetcar system from Whiting Station to Centennial Park Station. Then we had a fantastic team feast at Columbia Restaurant—the oldest Spanish restaurant in the United States, in operation for more than 117 years, and largest in the world with a whopping 15 dining rooms!

From empanadas and crab croquettes to an eclectic cocktail selection and flamenco dancing, our meal was delicious and our time here together was nothing short of spectacular.

Afterward, we boarded a private bus and continued our adventure to Pin Chasers in midtown—with 50 lanes, it’s a serious location for bowlers! We shared some unforgettable bonding—and just a little mischief—before calling it a night.

Day 2: Bright Ideas & Escape Rooms

Some of our early birds kicked off our first full day together in the city with breakfast at the hotel before heading to The Tampa Club for some business.

This 42-floor premier private event venue and lounge features breathtaking views of downtown—from City Hall to the Hillsborough River—Tampa Bay, and much more.

We spent the day brainstorming, discussing and goal setting. We couldn’t miss the opportunity for people to win some BrightAI merch—from frisbees to beanies! Bright Bingo got us up and moving around, and the puzzle break was highly competitive. The M&Ms on every table with our co-founders faces on them were definitely a talking point!

Workshops focused on what we are doing across the business, including operational plans and—importantly—thoughts from our customers.

The corporate yearbook was a highlight of the trip. This snapshot of BrightAI history will be incredible to look back on as the company grows. The book highlighted our team’s favorite snacks, sayings and TV shows, plus broke down what we all really do. We featured our families, our pets, spotlighted a few engineers and—of course—there were awards. (Some particularly amusing categories raised a smile!) There is already talk about this becoming an annual Bright tradition.

The offsite event gave everyone the chance to consider the exciting prospects for the year ahead. This is the point at which the foundation work starts to bear fruit, so commercialization featured strongly in discussions—getting things into the field, out ‘to the world’ and sharing what we do is an exciting prospect for 2023.

By the time 5 p.m. rolled around, we were ready to make our way to Tampa Pizza Company for a very casual family-style meal. Pass the pepperoni!

Afterward, we put our team-building to the test at The Great Escape Room Tampa.

With themes such as “poker night at the president’s bunker” and Houdini-esque seances, these rooms gave us a chance to do what we do best at BrightAI: think critically, work efficiently and shine a light on innovation where there otherwise hadn’t been.

It was also the perfect ending to a brief but enriching time together.

Powered by an Unmatched Team

The feedback from our team had one unequivocal conclusion—they want to do it again! More often. And for longer. In particular, with an extra full day to have even more time for functional teams to meet.

Every day, our BrightAI team leads AIoT innovations that revolutionize industries. What made this conference truly special was experiencing this reality alongside other team members, in person.

Our exceptional team fuels every single facet of what we do at BrightAI—helping a wide range of diverse industries revolutionize processes and unlock unimagined potential as never before.

Optimistic, curious, ingenious, passionate and relentless—we imagine new solutions to old problems, uncover dormant efficiencies and create a truly innovative future for our clients, and the world.

BrightAI is a platform powered by experienced minds with unparalleled knowledge of AI and AIoT. To disrupt your industry and unlock unimagined potential, contact us today.

Jan 4, 2023

Engineer Spotlight: Ryan Goss

When we asked our team at BrightAI ‘Who is your absolute most impressive teammate?,’ three names received the most votes. One of them was Staff Engineer, Ryan Goss.

COMMENTS FROM COLLEAGUES:

Ryan played a critical role on this project, helping on scoping efforts and swarming technical resources. As a result of his efforts, BrightAI was able to deliver the MVP and receive payment for this milestone in the beginning of 2022. This is a huge accomplishment for BrightAI and for Ryan and the team.

A significant portion of Ryan’s time was spent working with developers. He did a great job in taking high-level requests and translating them into tasks, which allowed us to effectively leverage staffing resources. Ryan exemplified the impact that a strong tech lead can have on solution integration. Furthermore, Ryan demonstrated his dedication and leadership skills by hand delivering scanners to the client, and continued a good rapport with them.

We chatted with Ryan about his background to find out where he developed the skills he brings to BrightAI.

On being in the top three and a ‘most impressive teammate.’

Getting that recognition means more because it comes from people who really care and see you as someone to look up to. I was surprised, because my team is pretty small compared to some others. It was super cool to get it because working hard and being easy to work with don’t always go together. What’s helped is leaning on each other more.

What I try to do as Tech Lead is make tough decisions. I take a practical approach, and we have lots of conversations with our customers.

The thing about BrightAI is that nobody needs to micromanage because we’re all so amazing at what we do. I don’t have to check up on what everyone is doing. You know who the experts are, you throw the balls at them, and they’ll catch them. On the flip side, when you need help, there’s always support.

On using personality strengths to deliver for customers.

I did a project in college called “Smart Tupperware.” It told you what cereal was in it, when it was going to run out, and then added it to your shopping list. I’ve always loved forms of automation. To me, it’s super cool to be able to enable that for more and more people across the world.

I’ve never been one to shy away from difficult situations or questions. Even my kindergarten teacher said to my mother, “Ryan asks too many questions.” I’m not rebellious, but if I see something could be more efficient, I will ask, “What if we looked at it from this perspective?”

Just because I question it, doesn’t mean I have to have it my way. It just means “let’s discuss it and work through it.” You may think something technically is better, and then the customer says no. But very rarely have I said we can make this faster, cheaper, and the company says “we don’t want to do that.” We bring them along, have a shared mindset with them, and travel together.

On being a defining project influence.

I have been on one project for 18 months, so I got to reshape it. It went through a whole experimentation, trial and error process. The overall goal was measuring, but the “how” was left open. There were going to be lasers, and other things, but all that had to be filled in. It’s so rewarding to see the finish line there, get this solution delivered and be used in the field. Now, our discussions have flipped, and it’s about how we optimize it.

The customer was thinking it would get incrementally better. We were talking vastly better. It’s extra rewarding when you get the product to them, and they see it working. This device is 100% customized. Every time, it’s been a process of discovery, finding a solution, and making improvements. Getting to this point is really exciting, such a triumph.

On collaborating to innovate.

We had to reevaluate the project. We were trying to fully automate it, so you would switch a device on and go. We were struggling, and eventually we said, “What is our ultimate objective?” We want to take this and digitize it and be accurate, repeatable, and easy. So we said, “What if we put a human in the loop, because we need somebody there, and we find a way to complement the human knowledge and the system we have and make it a harmonious method?”

It’s important to go watch how the user works, to experience the current operations and hear their “pain points.” We get to see how the legacy world does it, and then we go leaps and bounds over it, finding a myriad of ways to get the process into the digital realm—often accomplishing more than the customer can envision is even possible.

This approach with our customers builds trust. Because it’s collaborative, they have confidence in this device. It’s also a lot faster and better overall, and allows us to get more data, so eventually it will be purely automated.

On being part of a small (but mighty!) company.

It has a bit of everything. Being quite small, you get customer engagement, you get into the code and hardware. I physically get to hold devices in my hand and get out into the real world with this thing. I love that purpose, that perspective. It’s really enjoyable. It’s not sitting in front of a computer all day; it’s getting that interaction. What I like about BrightAI is we are half in the real world and half in the digital world. We’re digitizing the real world, and I like living on that boundary.

On big business versus start-up life.

My previous company had tens of thousands of employees, the majority in manufacturing. It was a giant company with lots of bureaucracy. It was manufacturing, with enough engineering to make the manufacturing better; but not highly innovative, not driving new things. For a while, we had a small start-up within the company, and at that point, we were having the best time. Three of those employees are now at BrightAI and were a big reason to come. I knew the people here were the top, and the things we were doing were exciting.

On working remote.

Our spare bedroom is like a spare parts bin. We have these big suitcases to store things; I’ve got tripods. I have so much stuff, it’s like I have a lab station at home. I do enjoy the at-home experience, and I travel to meet with customers regularly. I’ve seen everyone on our team face-to-face. It also helps that the person I work with most day-to-day is close to my house, three minutes away. We can still get together, brainstorm, get on the whiteboard.

On positive disruption.

I feel we are at a point where AI is disrupting these legacy industries in such a positive way. We’re doing something that offers so much value to everybody in the chain—the businesses, the users who are out in the field with it, and the end customer. Workers can be more efficient; AI is augmenting the situation. Nobody’s speciality is laying down using a tape measure. We are making workers more efficient, and better at what they do. A salesperson could then do the initial visit instead of the tech installer, so it is a better sales pitch. Across the board, I see these value deliveries. We don’t have a “product,” we have a “solution.” We’re making everything better, and that’s where there is such long-term value.

On changing the world for the better.

In an altruistic sense, what I see we’re doing is making the world better and more efficient. That’s super rewarding because, ultimately, efficiency is the way that humanity will work its way through a lot of challenges, whether it be climate or energy. I want to make the world generally better. It’s not just a job, it’s being part of that. I love it.

Dec 28, 2022

Engineer Spotlight: Albert Carr

When we asked our team at BrightAI “Who is your absolute most impressive teammate?,” three names received the most votes. One of them was Director of Hardware & Manufacturing, Albert Carr.

COMMENTS FROM COLLEAGUES:

It’s Albert, and I’d be surprised if many here don’t feel the same way.

[He’s an] excellent engineer, even better person, not sure how he keeps all the projects straight, but somehow he does. We’d be lost without him.

Albert is a special individual because he is a wonderful mix of technical prowess across multiple engineering specializations, blended with humility, work ethic and his desire for success for everyone around him.

We chatted with Albert about his unique role, plus his thoughts on his team and the challenges they face.

An unmissable opportunity.

I’ve been with Bright AI for about two years. It was a very exciting opportunity. The ability to do both artificial intelligence and IOT in a commercial setting just seemed like the right fit for the right time in the industry. The team brought me here. I’ve worked in the past with BrightAI team members, so it just seemed like a fantastic opportunity, with a great company and good leaders.

On the importance of prototypes.

I take things from concept to production. These last two years, having to navigate supply chain issues has been what keeps me up at night. We never used to have to consider designing around supply chain, but now we design for maximum flexibility, so we can use the parts that we can find. We’ve got an amazing small team that is constantly looking for parts. For our size, we’re definitely punching above our weight, and we’re doing everything we can to push our customers ahead.

I also own hardware, which includes building prototypes. A lot of the front-end work that goes into our projects starts in my garage. We often win business by bringing in a model and conducting a demonstration so our customers can see what we can do for them. I really enjoy this part. I’ve probably built over a dozen of these prototypes, and almost all of these are in production, or are currently in transition to production.

On the work being enjoyable.

At the end of the day, I’m a tinkerer, so these prototypes are probably the most fun I have. Supply chain is like a treasure hunt—it’s so rewarding. Being able to chip away at the monumental task it has turned out to be over these last two years makes me feel good.

On big career experiences.

I started working for Proctor & Gamble on large machinery, basically the size of a football field. The plant I worked at had a CapEx of about a billion and a half dollars.

From there, I took a job with an automotive plant and got into that mentality on manufacturing quality systems. In the automotive world, things are very tight, very lean. I learned a lot from companies like Denzo Toyota, and Honda.

I also worked in defense and aerospace on military computers where things were designed for ruggedness, ease-of manufacturability and cost. Lives depended on everything being right.

Next, I went to SmartThings after the acquisition from Samsung. [I] went from just owning hardware to owning hardware and supply chain, and then transitioning into product.

On working remote.

It’s been nice to be able to travel again and be able to get out and see some of the folks. Some I’ve worked with in the past, some I haven’t.

My team’s completely distributed. I’m in Florida, my electrical engineer is in Washington, and my procurement manager is located in Texas.

I’d say at least 25-30% of what I deal with is overseas. So, my role is always going to be a remote role. China has been very challenging recently, due to its Covid policy. I’ve not been able to get over there to do some of the work I usually do. But, thankfully, the tools have gotten fantastically better. I’m in constant contact with the people I need to be at all times. I think remote working is here to stay.

On my colleagues.

I’ve never worked with a team like the one we’ve put together here. It is above and beyond the best group of people I’ve worked with. They’re extraordinary in every way, shape or form. You’ve got people literally at the top of their craft in every single function. Having that type of work environment allows us to implement a lot more things into place faster.

We’ve got a vision and set direction, and everybody’s working towards that. It’s fantastic in that regard. It’s fun working here. There’s not a huge number of people in the world who can say that they are genuinely happy with what they’re doing.

Dec 28, 2022

Engineer Spotlight: Sam Carlton

When we asked our team at BrightAI ‘Who is your absolute most impressive teammate?,’ three names received the most votes. One of them was Staff Engineer, Sam Carlton.

COMMENTS FROM COLLEAGUES:

Sam is able to break down projects into components and guide the right technology. He is both humble and detailed. He communicates clearly and always follows up. He knows his audience and is relatable and friendly.

In the day-to-day development of features, I approve greatly of his pragmatic approach and desire to keep a project on track amid lack of clarity and definition. Having tangible websites makes discovering holes easier and faster, and Sam is always working to keep the product development cycle moving forward.

We chatted with Sam about his background and his approach to his work. He has obviously made a strong impact in only eight months.

On being the go-to person for web tech.

I was so surprised that I would’ve been in the top three, just by the sheer caliber of folks here. I don’t think there’s a person on the engineering team who I haven’t asked for help, so maybe I’m just always reciprocating and helping out as the go-to person for web tech when they need it.

I’ve been exposed to a lot of new areas of the software development life cycle, and naturally I’ve had to reach out to the subject matter experts in their particular fields for help. I’ve had the opportunity to learn from them through that process. And I’d like to think I was able to teach them something in return, and maybe that’s why the relationships between us have been so positive.

On putting the users first.

I am focusing on the UX, or the user experience, side of our products—the place where our customers actually log into on the web. Think of it like the admin portal, the dashboard that someone would log in to see all of the metrics related to their business.

We’ve been primarily focused on building up what we’re calling a studio. It’s essentially a way for us to monitor our fleet and our connected devices. We are working on one user-friendly app per vertical.

On being in charge of the challenges.

This is my second start-up. I did have a good eight years back in corporate America between start-ups. That was one of the reasons why I decided to join BrightAI, to just go completely to the opposite end of the spectrum—from being just one team member in some small aspect of a large organization, to being responsible for a whole set of challenges.

On going deep into tech.

A former coworker of mine joined BrightAI, and he reached out to me and said, “I’m working at this start-up now and we’re doing some pretty exciting stuff. You gotta come over here.”

One of the benefits with start-ups is we get to choose pretty much all of the technology that we’re using. At corporate America, you’re probably inheriting a system that another team had built and maintained over years and years and years, whereas here it’s all cutting edge, very modern. I like the problem space. It might sound boring if you say you work with laundry machines or rat traps, but I think if you go deep enough in any technology—as long as you like technology—you’ll find it interesting.

On working for an exciting start-up vs. a big corporation.

It’s kind of night and day to what it was like at my previous (corporate) role. There were so many more teams that would have to get involved in a decision to just bring a feature or a new app on board.

You get a sense of impact here because there’s not ten other people between you and the customer that are all acting as some sort of feedback funnel. There’s two people between me and the customer now. It’s about getting direct feedback and feeling like what you are working on has a direct impact, versus playing some small part in the overall structure of the company.

On lightening the load.

Primarily, I’m focused on how it (the user platform) functions. The goal is to make it frictionless to use. A lot of the interactions we’re targeting now are just supposed to be light touch bases. One of the goals of bringing AI into an industry like pest control isn’t to make it so that people have to actually go and check these dashboards all the time. It’s there if they need it, but ideally, they’re getting notifications. If we’re doing a good enough job, they should be proactively notified of the actions that they need to take. They shouldn’t have to be checking the app all the time.

On working remote.

I definitely miss the face-to-face interaction with a lot of folks. There’s no question about whether you can be more productive in certain times when you’re in an office, like strategy meetings, when you can get together with a whiteboard. No software has really gotten that good in collaborative thinking yet—that’s irreplaceable.

I don’t miss all of the shoulder tapping, interruptions and noise you get in the office. Working from home, I can get a solid six hours of just being able to focus on the code, and that kind of uninterrupted time is what really can make a productive day.

I think that speaks to a lot of the trust that we have among the engineering team, because there’s very little micromanagement. We’re depending on each other to all get our work done. There’s a healthy trust among the team, and that’s why we don’t have so many meetings in the first place.

On staying organized.

I’m going on 20 years now as a professional developer, so I just have a ton of experience in staying organized in my day-to-day. I’ve got a personalized system that I use. I have nothing on my desktop, and there’s nothing on my actual desk; because if it’s not something that I actually need to be focusing on or doing, it’s just simply removed from the equation. I focus on only the thing that I have to do that day or the next day. That’s kind of one of the benefits of the start-up. What does the customer need immediately for a launch? We’re staying focused on what matters and getting rid of everything that doesn’t.

On being part of a special team.

I’m just so absolutely buzzed to be working with my teammates. It’s always this incredible enthusiasm of, “Oh, it’s so good, I get to work with so and so, and they’re amazing.” Nobody wants to let anyone else down. It feels like the chemistry is just incredible. It’s very special.

What I was born to do.

I learned how to program when I was in elementary school, back in 1998. I built a little program for the T 83 Calculators for the PI theorem. A squared plus B squared equals C squared. You could give it the inputs for your math homework, and it would solve it for you and show you the work. I shared it with all the other kids in my grade. I made milk money.

I guess I’m one of those people who got really lucky and can say that if you get to do what you love, you don’t ever feel like you’re working.

Dec 5, 2022

Bright Minds at BrightAI

At BrightAI, we’re proud to attract some of the brightest minds in engineering and AI. Our team combines technical excellence with insatiable curiosity, solving real-world problems across essential services like water, HVAC, and manufacturing.

We sat down with front-end engineer Sammi Tafoya to hear about her path to BrightAI—and why she’s excited about the impact we’re making. We’re grateful to work with engineers who are not only brilliant and inquisitive, but also energized by collaboration, continuous learning, and the chance to leave a lasting mark on the world.

From Code to Real-World Impact

Sammi’s journey into software engineering began early. She explored computer science in high school and college and now knows eight programming languages—JavaScript being her longtime favorite.

Because it’s been around so long, there’s a lot of libraries built around it. You don’t waste time setting things up—you can focus on building cool things.

At BrightAI, Sammi works on web-based interfaces that power our AI and IoT platforms. But what makes the work meaningful, she says, is the impact it creates.

BrightAI isn’t AI for the sake of AI. We’re solving real business problems. Traditionally, I wouldn’t care what happens in a laundry room or how a pool gets measured—but our teams build solutions that change the way industries operate. That’s amazing.

Collaboration Without Boundaries

BrightAI is the third startup Sammi has worked for, but it’s the first that’s fully remote—and that’s something she now deeply values.

I’ve never worked a fully remote job before, but I love it. BrightAI makes a real effort to connect everyone, and I’ve never felt isolated. Honestly, I don’t want to go back to in-person work again.

She also appreciates the collaborative, roll-up-your-sleeves energy of the team:

I was hired as a front-end engineer, but I get to touch cloud work too. At a big company, I’d never be able to collaborate across teams the way I do here.

Why BrightAI?

Sammi says what drew her to BrightAI wasn’t just the technology—it was the people.

During the interview process, I really liked everyone I spoke with. There’s a mix of intelligence and humility here that makes it a great place to learn and grow.

Whether it’s leading customer demos, solving unexpected problems with senior engineers, or experimenting with new tools, Sammi’s experience at BrightAI reflects what we value most: curiosity, collaboration, relentless problem-solving, and real-world impact.

Join Us

We’re always looking for exceptional engineers and creative thinkers who want to make an impact.

💼 Explore BrightAI careers

Apr 6, 2022

BrightAI Recognized as Finalist in AI Excellence Awards

We are proud to announce that BrightAI has been named a finalist in the Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards by the Business Intelligence Group. This recognition celebrates organizations, products, and individuals who apply AI to solve real-world challenges.

Being selected as a finalist reflects our team’s dedication to developing innovative AI solutions that make a meaningful impact across industries.

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