Willow Operational AI Platform

Willow builds operational AI and digital twin software for buildings and infrastructure. It launched WillowTwin on Microsoft Azure in 2018 with Australian property group Investa, expanded into real estate with Brookfield Properties in 2020 and established a presence from Sydney to Dallas in 2022. It addresses fragmented building data spread across controls, maintenance and IoT systems.

The Willow platform unifies data from more than 100 source systems into a buildings ontology and knowledge graph, creating a digital twin with spatial, static and live data. On top sit Willow Copilot, a conversational AI for troubleshooting and capital planning, and autonomous agents that run control loops, manage work orders and flag failures early. Customers include Walmart, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, Georgia Southern University, HPE and BNP Paribas Real Estate.

• Knowledge graph: Models buildings in a detailed ontology linking IT and OT systems.
• Digital twin: Combines spatial, static and live data for each asset and space.
• Willow Copilot: Answers operations questions in natural language for troubleshooting and planning.
• Autonomous agents: Run control loops, route work orders and flag failures within set limits.
• Activate Packs: Provide data connectors and AI skills for more than 100 source systems.
• Microsoft integration: Runs on Azure and connects to Dynamics 365 and Procore.

An international airport in Vietnam can unify BMS and maintenance data across terminals to predict equipment failures. A retail chain can monitor refrigeration and HVAC across hundreds of stores. A university or hospital campus can use a conversational digital twin to help small facility teams prioritize work.

Walmart surfaced 842 potential failures across 20 stores in six months, with an estimated USD 1.4 million in avoided downtime and 20% less critical system downtime. Georgia Southern University reports USD 1 million in operational savings across 100+ buildings in nine months. DFW unified over 171,000 assets across five BMS and three maintenance systems, targeting 25% lower maintenance costs by 2030.

Building owners face facility labor shortages and rising energy costs while their data stays siloed in separate BMS and CMMS tools. Agentic AI layered on digital twins is emerging as a way to automate routine operations. Large campuses, airports and industrial parks in Southeast Asia face similar complexity as portfolios grow.

Launched WillowTwin in 2018 with Investa; presence from Sydney to Dallas since 2022. CEO Bert Van Hoof. Deployed in 38 countries on six continents. Microsoft Frontier Partner; 2026 AI Breakthrough award winner; named in Verdantix 2026 reports; Fast Company Next Big Things in Tech 2026. Founding year not stated on its site.