] Hubo Cai, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, a professor and associate head of the Lyles School of Civil and Construction Engineering at Purdue University, has been named a fellow by the ASCE Board of Direction.
Cai’s career as an internationally recognized pioneer in digital construction and engineering informatics has fundamentally transformed civil infrastructure delivery by bridging physical construction operations and advanced digital capabilities. He brings over two decades of expertise spanning academic leadership, geospatial modeling, and field application.
His research integrates artificial intelligence (AI), multimodal sensing, building information modeling (BIM), and digital twin to convert traditional construction practices into knowledge-based digital workflows. He developed the "SmartDig" platform, an uncertainty-aware geospatial system integrating ground penetrating radar (GPR), global positioning system (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), and natural language processing (NLP) to provide real-time subsurface visualization and prevent utility strikes. He also created risk-based inspection and lifecycle data frameworks – adopted by state transportation agencies including the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) and South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) – and pioneered wearable electroencephalography (EEG) and computer vision to predict safety hazards.
Cai’s interdisciplinary contributions have earned premier recognitions, including the 2023 Alfred Noble Prize, the 2019 Transportation Research Board K.B. Woods Award, the 2018 ASCE Collingwood Prize, and the 2020 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO "Sweet 16" High Value Research Projects Award.
A dedicated leader within the profession, Cai serves as chair of the ASCE Computing Division Executive Committee and past chair of the ASCE Data Sensing and Analysis Committee. He has served as an associate editor for ASCE’s Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering since 2005 and has been recognized multiple times as an Outstanding Reviewer. Honored with the Ross Judson Buck Outstanding Counselor Award for his mentorship, Cai has guided numerous students into influential global academic and industry roles, continuously advancing computational research, education, and the digital transformation of civil engineering.
Cai earned his bachelor of engineering degree in construction engineering from Tongji University (1998), followed by his master of civil engineering (2002) and doctoral degrees in civil engineering (2004) from North Carolina State University. He is registered as a professional engineer in Michigan.
