Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1545430
6 H A R T F O R D B U S I N E S S J O U R N A L | A M E R I C A A T 2 5 0 I immigrated to the United States from Pakistan in the winter of 1983 with nothing more than a dream, an engineering degree, my wits, and two $20 bills. At the time, I had no family in this country, no Social Security number, no bank account, no credit cards, and no plan B. Not in my wildest dreams could you have told a 25-year-old me that I would build a company that would help inspect, design, and construct the roads, bridges, highways, railroads, airports, and other public infrastructure that carry millions of Americans every day. at I did so is not a testament to me or my team, but to the country and the state that made it possible for a young man from the Indian Subcontinent, with blue-collar, middle-class roots, to dream big and turn his vision of building a forward-looking engineering institution into reality. In 1991, at 33, I started AI Engineers, Inc. in the basement of my Cromwell condo with $10,000 in personal savings, a draft- ing table, a computer, 0 employees, and a handful of prayers that I would make it all work. Fast-forward 35 years, and the firm now employs more than 400 people across nearly a dozen offices, works in 17 states, and generates over $92 million in annual revenue designing and inspecting the bridges/struc- tures, highways, airports, rail lines, and water systems our national, regional, and state economies depend on. My story is not simply a celebration of my company or myself; it points to something larger. America, at its best, is a place of immense opportunity where a person can arrive with next to nothing and turn pie-in-the-sky ambitious dreams into reality through sheer hard work, hustle, and grit. at promise of America as a "land of opportunity" - where what you build matters more than where or how you began - is the engine behind 250 years of American enterprise, prosperity and innovation. It was the promise that drew me to this country, to make a better life for myself and my family and do better than the circumstances I was born into. As the country approaches its 250th year, I would be remiss not to underscore how vital it is that we preserve this distinctive American culture of opportunity for our young people. We must show them where their career paths can lead and equip them with the skills they will need to succeed in tomorrow's workforce as technical staff, as project managers, and as the entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs of the future. Our public infrastructure is aging, and the work of renewing and upgrading it will fall to a younger generation of engineers. e construction-engineering industry is poised for major change, with rapid, AI-oriented upskilling and reskilling coming up on a near-future horizon in addition to our workforce's most seasoned engineers heading toward retirement in the years and decade ahead. Our work in public transit and infrastructure has real con- sequences for our communities every day. It is demanding, essential work, and we take our unspoken, purpose-led covenant with the traveling public seriously. I consider it a privilege to do it here in Connecticut and across the country. Today we are expanding our Middletown campus and investing several million dollars in new computing power and artificial intelligence, with a focus on continuing to develop our young engineers. e future of this firm, like the future of American infrastructure, will be in good hands because we have talented people in this state and in this country. As the United States marks 250 years, I am grateful for what this country made possible for one immigrant engineer and a basement startup. We intend to repay that debt the only way we know how: by building well, investing boldly, and leaving Connecticut and the nation stronger than we found them. We owe it to the next generation of rising leaders who will continue to seek American opportunity wherever it may be. Abul Islam, PE, DBIA, FASCE President & CEO AMERICA AT 250 • LETTERS FROM CONNECTICUT'S BUSINESS LEADERS A letter from AI Engineers, Inc.