Butlr, a company specialising in physical artificial intelligence, has launched two new products for building operators: "Ask Butlr" and the "Smart Cleaning" module. As a spin-off from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Butlr combines thermal sensor technology with machine learning to infer human behaviour without using cameras or other methods that could compromise anonymity.
"Ask Butlr", an AI analytics tool, enables building operators to ask questions about occupancy and usage and receive data-driven insights. This latest product from the Burlingame, California-based company uses anonymised thermal sensor data, integrated with AI, to provide insights into building occupancy, dwell time, footfall frequency, and energy consumption within the built environment.
The system also supports strategic space planning, operations, and capital investments in real estate with granular, anonymously collected data based on human behaviour. This allows the physical AI and spatial intelligence platform to address current and future building requirements. Honghao Deng, CEO and co-founder of Butlr, explained that "Ask Butlr" was developed in response to customers' growing need for precise, first-party data and insights into buildings, without compromising user privacy and anonymity.
He added that this new offering quickly analyses and presents information in an easily digestible format, enabling facility managers, workplace decision-makers, and CRE professionals to optimise spaces while achieving a higher return on investment for their buildings. The "Smart Cleaning" module, also part of Butlr's spatial intelligence platform, uses detailed, anonymised usage data to reduce cleaning costs for restrooms.
Efficiency through precise data collection
Butlr's wall- or ceiling-mounted thermal sensors are placed outside restrooms to capture visitor frequency and occupancy data. The "Smart Cleaning" module offers a deeper level of insight based on the number of door openings for the restroom facilities. Within the restrooms, an optional touch module allows staff to confirm that cleaning has been carried out. The data flows directly into the Butlr dashboard, forming a closed system that directs building teams to the areas where their effort is most needed.
A recent survey commissioned by Butlr and conducted by Wakefield Research found that 24 per cent of unused office space continues to be heated and cooled, while 66 per cent of building managers clean all areas with the same frequency due to their reliance on fixed maintenance schedules. Butlr claims that its module for restroom maintenance and cleaning can save $1,400 per restroom annually.
Deng highlighted that restroom maintenance has always been a challenge due to privacy concerns. As a result, facility staff clean areas that do not require it and inadvertently overlook those that do. The "Smart Cleaning" technology solves this challenge, as Butlr shows decision-makers exactly how the space is being used, allowing them to replace assumption-based decisions with verified data for immediate and measurable cost savings.
