How Cascade's AI Predicts Projects Before RFPs

Cascade's AI continuously monitors a wide range of public signals to detect and surface upcoming projects before requests for proposals (RFPs) are ever issued. The data sources include :

• Bond filings and municipal finance documents
• Budget announcements and capital plans
• Permits and zoning filings
• Property transactions and real estate records
• Earnings transcripts (where companies disclose expansion plans)
• Meeting minutes from government and planning boards

The platform then enriches these signals with project scope, timeline, key decision-makers, and competitive intelligence, helping AEC firms prioritize and begin positioning early .

As co-founder and CEO Hannia Zia put it: "Every firm we work with can point to a project they should have won but never even had a chance to see" .

Founders and Background

Cascade was founded in 2025 by Hannia Zia and Joana Ferreira, both former operators at Google and Amazon who met at UnlikelyAI, the neuro-symbolic AI startup founded by the co-creator of Amazon Alexa . Zia serves as CEO and Ferreira as CTO. The startup is dual-based in London and New York City .

The founding team combined big-tech AI expertise with firsthand experience of how early project intelligence—often buried in public records—gave some AEC firms an unfair advantage .

Traction and Client Results

• Cascade has surfaced over $10 billion in project opportunities for its clients .
• Its customers include major contractors and firms working on high-profile infrastructure projects, such as those building for JFK and LaGuardia airports, as well as data centers and nuclear facilities .
• Clients also span luxury hotels and other large-scale developments .

Use of Funds

Cascade plans to use the seed funding to :

• Expand its engineering and go-to-market teams
• Accelerate product development, including deeper AI capabilities and broader signal coverage
• Scale sales and customer acquisition across the AEC sector

The funding will also help the startup industrialize the head start that some firms have traditionally gained through relationships and spreadsheets .

How Cascade's AI Predicts Projects Before RFPs

Cascade's AI continuously monitors a wide range of public signals to detect and surface upcoming projects before requests for proposals (RFPs) are ever issued. The data sources include :

• Bond filings and municipal finance documents
• Budget announcements and capital plans
• Permits and zoning filings
• Property transactions and real estate records
• Earnings transcripts (where companies disclose expansion plans)
• Meeting minutes from government and planning boards

The platform then enriches these signals with project scope, timeline, key decision-makers, and competitive intelligence, helping AEC firms prioritize and begin positioning early .

As co-founder and CEO Hannia Zia put it: "Every firm we work with can point to a project they should have won but never even had a chance to see" .

Founders and Background

Cascade was founded in 2025 by Hannia Zia and Joana Ferreira, both former operators at Google and Amazon who met at UnlikelyAI, the neuro-symbolic AI startup founded by the co-creator of Amazon Alexa . Zia serves as CEO and Ferreira as CTO. The startup is dual-based in London and New York City .

The founding team combined big-tech AI expertise with firsthand experience of how early project intelligence—often buried in public records—gave some AEC firms an unfair advantage .

Traction and Client Results

• Cascade has surfaced over $10 billion in project opportunities for its clients .
• Its customers include major contractors and firms working on high-profile infrastructure projects, such as those building for JFK and LaGuardia airports, as well as data centers and nuclear facilities .
• Clients also span luxury hotels and other large-scale developments .

Use of Funds

Cascade plans to use the seed funding to :

• Expand its engineering and go-to-market teams
• Accelerate product development, including deeper AI capabilities and broader signal coverage
• Scale sales and customer acquisition across the AEC sector

The funding will also help the startup industrialize the head start that some firms have traditionally gained through relationships and spreadsheets .