Feature: PROPEL BY MIPIM
Proptech for the planet Faisal Butt of VC Pi Labs says ESG is of upmost importance to the future of real estate
As technology applications evolve beyond the digital urgency created by the pandemic, Isobel Lee finds that industry startups are being asked to help real estate become great and green
H
ow can property developers track the construction process, with a view to making it more efficient? What tools are available for residential landlords to manage vacant units? And, perhaps most importantly, how can existing buildings cut their carbon footprint? Increasingly, the real estate industry will look to technology to solve some of its most pressing problems in 2022, after two seminal years in which proptech made itself indispensable. While the burgeoning property technology scene witnessed many important breakthroughs prior to the pandemic, the global health crisis introduced a unique set of parameters which accelerated its adoption. From
travel bans to social distancing mandates, remote working (and remote viewing) requirements forced many firms to go digital — and fast. Although applications including portfolio management software and air quality sensors tackled immediate issues at the pandemic’s height, most tools were designed for much broader application, and their use is likely to stick. “One of the challenges pre-COVID was demonstrating the viability of scaling tech applications,” says Mike Gedye, head of the technology sector vertical at CBRE. “Previously, we were running lots of small pilots on a single floor. What happened during global lockdowns was the global piloting of new applications, triggering an accelerated
adoption which has propelled the industry forward by some five to 10 years.” A 2021 study by JLL identified some 8,000 proptech firms now in existence around the world involved in upgrading the real estate industry’s efficiency and even accountability. The pain points these startups are being asked to solve today involve every aspect of the real estate lifecycle, and the tools themselves are being applied across all kinds of asset classes and for all kinds of problems. “There are incredible opportunities for technology to revolutionize the commercial real estate (CRE) industry,” says Raj Singh, managing partner of JLL Spark. “Specifically, we’ve noted a significant surge in new startups at the intersection of proptech and AI, robotics or 5G seeking to solve challenges in CRE. These trends will only continue to accelerate
this year as organisations seek innovative solutions supporting flex or hybrid working and sustainability protocols.” Yet it is the real estate industry’s greatest challenge — decarbonisation — that is likely to become proptech’s biggest battle as well. Etienne Prongué, UK CEO, BNP Paribas Real Estate, says: “Corporates are adopting tech at scale and ESG is driving the market. The focus for 2022 and beyond will be on the proptechs which can demonstrate they have the potential to be forces for good in areas such as workplace wellbeing, and, in particular, climate risk. There is significant untapped tech potential for the built environment in reaching net-zero targets, and in turn, future proofing assets. Any technology that supports the decarbonisation of real estate will continue to attract a great deal of attention.”
MIPIM PREVIEW • 41 • February 2022 MIPIM_Propel_+D2_+S.indd 1
02/02/2022 09:51
