Martyn Day has been covering AEC software since before most of us were using it professionally, which means he's seen enough product launches, bold promises, and quiet disappointments to know the difference between something genuinely new and something that just looks that way. So when he talks about Qonic at length, unprompted, unsponsored, on the TRXL podcast with Evan Troxel, it's worth paying attention.
Watch the full conversation here:
If you'd rather read the highlights first, here's what stood out.
The "BIM Ceiling"
Martyn didn't open with Qonic. He opened with the industry, and with a pattern he's watched repeat itself across decades of AEC software: tools that work well at a certain scale, then gradually stop keeping up as the projects around them grow larger and more complex.
"They've developed it for data sets that are a certain size. And then over time they end up with customers building more and more... it gets worse and worse."
Most people in AEC have felt this without ever quite naming it. We did a deep dive in our piece: Why BIM software gets slower as projects get bigger. But Martyn's version of the problem is simpler and more honest: the software was built for a smaller world, and the world got bigger.
Chalk and cheese
Martyn Day has watched the same software story play out for years until he saw Qonic. He described the "high process state" that traditional BIM users have simply learned to accept.
"Revit is constantly trying to check the parametrics of every single part to see if any edit you made has got any kind of follow on. So it's constantly in this high process state."
His verdict? "Chalk and cheese." Qonic is a fundamental architectural shift. Qonic doesn't win by being a "better" parametric tool; it wins by removing the need to manage those complex relationships in the first place. One manages the burden of the past; the other is built for the fluidity of the present.
Built fast from the start
Martyn highlighted that Qonic was engineered for the most demanding data sets from day one. It wasn't a response to pressure; it was the baseline.
"They've started off with just this ability to ingest everything and fly at huge FPS numbers. And then you just fly into the building, you fly up into the one object, and then you start modelling."
That’s the difference between a modern, cloud-native engine and an aging platform trying to keep up. We didn’t retrofit performance; we made it the blueprint. The result? A tool that handles massive IFC data sets as easily as a simple sketch.
The team, the founder, and why it matters
Martyn noted that Qonic’s real "secret sauce" might be the people. Most of the twenty-five-person team worked together at BricsCAD for over ten years before joining forces here.
"To have that velocity of people all working together pushing forward, rather than hiring one by one, it's a massive advantage."
And then there's Erik. Martyn shared how Erik built a legacy, faced a collapse, and rebuilt with the same people, carrying every lesson from what went wrong the first time. Martyn said Erik had him in tears at a talk. It’s a powerful testament to why Qonic is different: it’s built on trust, experience and resilience.
A new era for AEC
"If it has the right tools, it will demolish anything in its path."
That’s not just a quote; it’s a recognition of what happens when a genuinely modern architecture meets a frustrated industry. Martyn sees the potential for Qonic to clear the path where legacy tools have hit a wall.
Put the engine to the test. Upload your own model at app.qonic.com and experience the speed Martyn is talking about.
For the technical "why" behind the performance, check out: Why BIM software gets slower as projects get bigger.
Watch the full conversation with Evan Troxel on YouTube.
FAQ - Questions this article raises
Who is Martyn Day and why does his opinion matter? Martyn Day is the Editor and co-founder of AEC Magazine. With over 30 years of experience tracking CAD and BIM software, he is considered one of the industry's most influential independent journalists. His opinion matters because he provides critical, unsponsored analysis of AEC technology, often highlighting the structural limitations of legacy software.
What is the TRXL podcast? TRXL is a prominent tech podcast hosted by Evan Troxel. It focuses on the intersection of technology, people, and the future of the AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) industry. The show is known for deep-dive, long-form interviews with industry leaders, architects, and software innovators.
What did Martyn Day say about Qonic? In a 2026 interview on the TRXL podcast, Martyn Day described Qonic’s performance as "chalk and cheese" compared to traditional BIM. He highlighted Qonic's ability to handle massive data sets at high frame rates in a browser. He concluded that if Qonic continues its current development, it "will demolish anything in its path" due to its superior modern architecture and veteran development team.
Is Qonic a replacement for Revit? While Qonic is not a 1-to-1 feature replacement for Revit today, it is building toward being a complete IFC-native alternative. Qonic currently excels where Revit struggles: large-scale coordination, high-performance data management, and browser-based collaboration. Unlike Revit’s legacy parametric engine, Qonic uses a modern architecture designed for speed and scalability, making it a powerful tool for the full BIM workflow.