Biweekly Platform Digest

Period: July 20, 2026 – August 3, 2026

Highlights

• Added a new Cross Projects Dashboard that gives a consolidated view of data and activity across all projects in one place.
• Users can now nest workstreams within other workstreams for more organized, hierarchical project planning.
• Added the ability to set baselines on the Gantt schedule, so users can save a snapshot of the plan and compare it against current progress over time.
• Delivered major upgrades to the Shackleton AI assistant, including better search accuracy, document citations, and the ability to answer questions about change order costs and budget history.

Ernest API (3 releases)

Areas Affected: Projects, Billing, Documents, Company Management, Field Reports, Integrations, Schedule, Observations, RFIs, Submittals, GC Logs, Shackleton AI, Modals, Mobile App, Shackleton AI Assistant, Finance, Subcontracts, Organization Settings, Scheduling

Release on July 23, 2026

• Removed an unnecessary ellipsis (...) from the simple text view for a cleaner display. (Ticket)
• Added support for nested workstreams so users can organize workstreams within other workstreams, and improved the reliability of how workstream status is tracked. (Ticket)
• Billing months that come before a month that's already been billed are now locked, preventing accidental changes to previously billed periods. (Ticket)
• The Total Retainage row on invoices now also includes retainage from phases that haven't been billed yet, giving a more accurate total. (Ticket)
• Fixed an issue where archived plan sheets could end up sharing duplicate names after being merged. (Ticket)
• Added the ability to sort the company users list alphabetically. (Ticket)
• Fixed issues affecting notarization and lien waiver processing. (Ticket)
• Added the ability to search across multiple digital reports at once, making it faster to find the information you need. (Ticket)
• Began building support for connecting Ernest to outside accounting systems, starting with secure sign-in for Sage 300 (hh2). Additional integration features are still in progress. (Ticket)
• Fixed several billing issues to improve accuracy and reliability. (Ticket)

Release on July 28, 2026

• Modals can now display a colored subtitle, giving more flexibility to highlight important context at the top of a modal. (Ticket)
• Introduced a new Cross Projects Dashboard that gives users a consolidated view of data and activity across all of their projects in one place, along with related design refinements. (Ticket)
• Observation, RFI, and Submittal PDFs now include the assignee, making it easier to see who is responsible for each item when printed or shared. (Ticket)
• Delivered a first round of improvements to Shackleton AI, enhancing its overall performance and reliability. (Ticket)
• Fixed an issue where summary cards were being cut off and not displaying their full content. (Ticket)
• Fixed an issue in the GC Log drawer where the sub-company dropdown menu would not open. (Ticket)
• Added pagination to the Observations table, making it easier and faster to browse through large numbers of observations. (Ticket)
• Fixed a display issue where the Add Objective modal could appear behind the GC Log drawer instead of on top of it. (Ticket)
• Added the ability to set baselines on the Gantt schedule, so users can save a snapshot of the plan and compare it against current progress over time. (Ticket)
• Made additional visual refinements to the new Gantt baselines feature based on design feedback. (Ticket)

Release on July 31, 2026

• Improved how the mobile app checks its version, allowing updates to be managed more efficiently without requiring a full app store release. (Ticket)
• Delivered a major round of improvements to the Shackleton AI assistant, refining its design and overall usability based on user feedback. (Ticket)
• Added the ability to sort by cost code on the Billing and Cash Flow pages, making it easier to organize and review financial data. (Ticket)
• Shackleton now shows a clear, helpful error message when something goes wrong, instead of failing without explanation. (Ticket)
• A new streamlined process for creating companies within organization settings was developed but has been temporarily rolled back while further refinements are made. No changes are currently visible to users. (Ticket)
• The Observations page now automatically refreshes when changes are made through Shackleton, so updates appear immediately without a manual reload. (Ticket)
• Fixed an issue with how payment compliance was calculated for subcontractor invoices, ensuring compliance statuses display accurately. (Ticket)
• Improved the Sage 300 integration by speeding up data loading and adding the ability to map projects and subcontractors between Ernest and Sage 300. (Ticket)
• Made design refinements to improve visual consistency and usability. (Ticket)
• Improved internal processes for keeping feature documentation current and accurate. (Ticket)

Ernest iOS App (1 release)

Areas Affected: Text Editor, Mobile App

Release on August 3, 2026

• Added support for hyperlinks in rich text fields, so users can insert clickable links to external resources, documents, or webpages directly within notes, descriptions, and other text entries. (Ticket)
• Introduced automated generation of feature documentation, helping keep reference materials current as new platform functionality is released. (Ticket)
• Automated the process of publishing new mobile app versions, streamlining rollouts so mobile updates reach users faster and more consistently. (Ticket)

Ernest MCP Server (2 releases)

Areas Affected: AI Assistant, Finance, Projects, Punch Lists, Action Items, Reports

Release on July 22, 2026

• Improved the reliability and accuracy of the AI assistant's search, so it returns more consistent and relevant results when users ask questions. (Ticket)
• The AI assistant's document search now supports exact phrase matching and displays citations, letting users see exactly which document and section an answer came from. (Ticket)
• Improved how the AI assistant classifies different types of project information behind the scenes, helping it give more accurate answers. (Ticket)
• The AI assistant can now answer questions about change order finances, helping users quickly check costs and financial impacts tied to change orders. (Ticket)
• The AI assistant can now provide information on owner invoice retainage amounts, and a formatting issue with owner invoices was corrected. (Ticket)
• The AI assistant can now share budget modification history, giving users visibility into how a project's budget has changed over time. (Ticket)
• Workstreams can now be nested within other workstreams, allowing teams to organize project work into more detailed hierarchies. (Ticket)
• Temporarily rolled back a document search citation update while it was being refined before re-release. (PR)
• Aligned finance dashboard settings between the test and live environments to prevent inconsistencies. (PR)

Release on July 31, 2026

• Punch list requests are now correctly routed to punch list items, ensuring they appear in the right place for tracking and follow-up. (Ticket)
• Action items can now be linked to related items and updated across multiple projects, making it easier to keep connected work in sync. (Ticket)
• Digital reports now load through an improved retrieval process, making them faster and more reliable to access. (Ticket)
• Feature documentation is now generated automatically and kept up to date, giving the Customer Success team more reliable reference materials. (Ticket)

Ernest NLS API (1 release)

Areas Affected: Documents

Release on July 31, 2026

• Added an automated retry process that reprocesses files which initially failed to be indexed for search, helping ensure documents are reliably available when users search for them. (Ticket)