For three Duke seniors, a first-year engineering assignment grew into a successful startup.
QuikCal, which began as a student project in Engineering 101, Engineering Design and Communications, is a tool that uses artificial intelligence to assist with scheduling deliveries at construction sites and improve communication for commercial projects. The AI software, developed by seniors Delali Cudjoe, Alec Liu and Ken Kalin, was recently sold to MOCA Systems, Inc. (MSI).
When they were students in EGR 101, Cudjoe and Kalin were presented with a client — Evan Reilly, Pratt ‘16 — who assigned them to a project for Skanska, a global construction company with an office in Durham. The students learned that on most construction sites, deliveries and logistics are written on a large whiteboard, which leads to confusion and — according to Kalin — creates friction.
The team was tasked with solving this problem. The first prototype of QuikCal focused only on delivery scheduling “where construction workers could send text messages from the field to update the office workers about incoming deliveries,” Kalin said.
However, since QuikCal was created prior to the launch of ChatGPT and the popularization of generative artificial intelligence, Cudjoe said it was “pretty difficult” to use and required “specific commands” to work.
The launch of generative AI models was a turning point — Kalin realized it could be the “missing piece” their software needed. Cudjoe and Kalin stepped back and took time to learn more about the industry’s struggles and how QuikCal could help. Soon, it could streamline the process of transforming requests from workers into action by performing tasks like scheduling deliveries and updating calendars.
After incorporating AI into their platform, Cudjoe and Kalin attended a program called I-Corps, which was run by the National Science Foundation, where prospective customers and experts in the field were able to give feedback on their product.
“That led us to kind of change from this narrow delivery solution,” Kalin said.
The introduction of generative AI tools and the addition of Liu to the team were crucial in expanding QuikCal from its focus on delivery service to helping facilitate pull planning — the practice in construction of collaboratively setting goals and then working backwards to set deadlines for their completion. This is typically done using “floor-to-ceiling” displays of “hundreds” of sticky notes, Liu said.
Liu used AI to create a feature that could make a picture of such a wall of sticky notes “into a digital version.”
According to Kalin, this feature was unique to QuikCal, as most tools try to replace the sticky-note system instead of working with it. Instead, they converted what construction workers were already familiar with to a digital format.
In addition, QuikCal boasts a feature that assigns a phone number to each construction site and allows people to text a chatbot on that number to schedule deliveries.
While navigating their business journey, the QuikCal founders drew from support systems including the Christensen Family Center for Innovation, which helps engineering students who are budding entrepreneurs, as well as the Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs program — which Kalin partook in.
Amy Linnane, managing director of co-curricular programs for Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship, including the Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs program, advised the founders of QuikCal, in particular Kalin, throughout their journey. She described the students as “really focused.”
“These students, not only were they working on all their classes, but also taking the time and energy to build this business, which is not easy even if you have no classes,” she said.
Linnane added that through the Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs program, the QuikCal founders were able to travel to a venture conference in Atlanta, as well as gain access to “people outside of the Duke bubble.”
So, ahead of the Class of 2025’s graduation ceremony, the QuikCal founders had to decide what they wanted to do with their company. Since they all have job offers after graduation — Kalin will be remaining in the startup world working for Amplified Industries, while Cudjoe and Liu will be working at Amazon and Microsoft, respectively — they felt it would be best to sell.
While not every participant in the Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs program eventually sells their company, Linnane helped the founders with the process. This included assisting them with “pitch practice” and introducing them to Duke alumni who had also sold their businesses.
Kalin indicated that multiple companies were interested but that they ultimately closed the deal with MSI since they are “the industry leader.” He did not disclose the amount QuikCal was sold for.
“This is a big step in aiding the transition from analog to digital planning,” said Brett Adamczyk, president of MSI’s software division, in a press release. “… The team has shown remarkable entrepreneurial traits in identifying a real-world pain point and developing an applicable technology solution for construction professionals.”
Now that they won’t be running QuikCal any longer, Cudjoe, Liu and Kalin plan to focus on learning more about the industries they are entering and gaining professional experience. However, they might not be separated for long.
“The running joke is that Ken is supposed to call us on some random night and be like, ‘alright, we're doing it again,’” Liu said.
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Dylan Halper | University News Editor
Dylan Halper is a Trinity first-year and university news editor for the news department.
