- Due to acceptance of new tech during the pandemic, proptech has grown significantly
- Artificial intelligence within proptech can ignite change, expert argues
- Innovation in the industry as at an all-time high
Proptech, which refers to innovative technologies in real estate business models and processes, has continued to grow significantly.
Thanks to the pandemic, such technology has been adopted rapidly reflecting on the market’s acceptance of digital solutions to find, assess and design for property development online.
Proptech on the move
Just last week, Openn Negotiation listed on the ASX, opening 50% higher on its maiden day. This week, Proptech Group completed their acquisition of Eagle Software.
In Perth, a co-working space dedicated for proptechs, Proptech Hub, launched in February, and in May the Proptech Association of Australia held their first proptech awards.
Airtasker’s cofounder Jonathan Lui who set up Soho recently acquired Homesales.com.au to take on the major property portals, mainly Domain and realestate.com.au.
Interview with Dr Ben Coorey
Dr Benjamin Coorey, an expert in 3D generative design and the founder of Archistar, believes that given the rapid upskilling taking place in the property industry, stakeholders in the industry should be paying attention.
Over time, he believes it will become a basic requirement for all dealing with real estate. A particular proptech trend Dr Coorey has noticed is artificial intelligence (AI).
Dr Coorey said this technology can assist in predicting the most profitable development locations, optimise revenue and improve new development layouts.
Additionally, with access to CRM databases, AI can accurately predict the wants and needs of clients and help target ideal customers.
Dr Coorey, who has a PhD in generative design and has worked with major clients such as LJ Hooker, Ray White and Harcourts, spoke to The Property Tribune about the future of the industry.
Role of proptech
By way of example, Dr Coorey said that property planning is extremely fractured and there is no standardised way to view, understand and apply rules within a council, borough or country.
“Technology can help an individual governing body make rules transparent so that future generations will be able to make informed decisions to hit their desired economic and social goals.
“Rich historical knowledge and context should not disappear when a subject matter expert departs from their role,” he said.
AI disruption
AI can help property professionals in the same way it’s beginning to help other industries, he believes.
“Allowing AI to handle unmanageable amounts of data, picking up trends and learning from inputs will equip property developers, real estate agents, designers and policy makers with rich insights that would otherwise be limited to a few technical specialists.
“The benchmark of property professional knowledge will be raised to a new gold standard, resulting in smarter and sustainable property decisions for everyone, with benefits trickling down to individual homeowners,” he said.
Proptech trends
Both in Australia and internationally, Dr Coorey said that proptech is undergoing a “renaissance period” where new technology emerges every day and players are learning quickly from each other.
“There is no monolithic company dominating the space and innovation is at an all time high. It’s a very exciting space to work in.
“Ultimately, with sustainability as a core value for many of these companies, it doesn’t matter who emerges as the winner in the end, every single person on the planet will be a beneficiary,” he said.
Hold proptech accountable
Business owners should hold proptech companies accountable when it comes to ease-of-use, he said.
“It is [proptech’s] responsibility as new technology vendors to make our tools user-friendly and seamless, blending with their existing processes as much as possible,” he said.
There are real business impacts when moving from one platform to another, so the onus is on the tech company to ensure clients can learn and get quick use out of the technology as soon as possible.