Autodesk’s mature BIM authoring tool connects to the Forma AECO platform
Autodesk has launched the Tech Preview of “Revit as a Forma Connected Client”, making it the first Autodesk desktop product to offer a “deeper integration” with Forma, Autodesk’s AECO industry cloud.
With the Tech Preview, teams can move data from Forma Site Design and Forma Building Design into Revit without manual file exchange.
Autodesk explains that contextual data from the Forma Data Marketplace, such as terrain, surrounding buildings, and parcels, can also be sourced from external providers and added to projects in “just a few clicks”.
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Elsewhere, some of Forma’s cloud capabilities, such as environmental analysis, can now be performed directly within Revit.
While Revit is the first official Forma Connected Client, Autodesk plans to bring more of its desktop applications into the mix over time.
Meanwhile, Autodesk Assistant is now available in Revit, bringing what Autodesk describes as contextual, AI-powered guidance directly into the BIM authoring tool. It is designed to work with models, workflows, and industry-specific context.
Autodesk emphasizes that Autodesk Assistant for Revit goes beyond ‘just answering questions’—it can help execute tasks and orchestrate actions across Autodesk products.
From a licensing perspective, all Revit subscribers now have access to Forma Site Design, Forma Building Design, Forma Board, and Forma Data Management Essentials. According to Autodesk, this expanded access brings AI-powered planning, early design, collaboration, and connected data workflows into a more unified experience.
Forma Building Design is a design and analysis offering built specifically for the schematic design phase.
It allows teams to set up geolocated sites, create and detail building options with tools and design automations to add and edit facades, floor plans, and units. Architects can evaluate performance through analyses such as daylight, sun hours, and carbon. Once refined, projects can move into Revit as geolocated, native models for detailed design and documentation.
Forma Data Management Essentials is said to provide a simple, no-cost entry point into shared, up-to-date project data.
Finally, Forma Board is designed to help teams stay aligned through ‘visual collaboration’ across every stage of a project. Autodesk says it will soon include AI rendering capabilities that will help teams visualise intent from sketches and images and more easily explore atmosphere, materiality, and mood.
