The real estate industry, traditionally characterised by its cautious adoption of new technologies, is now at a pivotal juncture. The emergence of generative artificial intelligence or gen AI (which I will refer to simply as ‘AI’ from here on), with its open-ended and self-evolving nature, promises to fundamentally change the way we live, work and play.
Investors, managers, and occupiers find themselves sitting atop mountains of proprietary and third-party data, about properties, communities, and market dynamics. Gen AI allows this wealth of information can be harnessed to tailor AI tools for real estate-specific tasks. Imagine lightning-fast identification of investment opportunities, efficient analysis of ESG data, revolutionary building and interior design, personalised marketing materials, and seamless customer journeys.
Figure 1: The development of AI
Source: Cromwell Property Group Q2 2024
AI is already being used to streamline processes, improve accuracy, and enable data-driven decisions. As the technology becomes more sophisticated and widely adopted it will have a substantial influence on occupier behaviour and impact the evolution of their space usage and demand. Understanding shifts in occupier location, asset type and amenity preferences is crucial to optimising investment allocation decisions and driving returns. The impact of AI will vary by real estate segment so lets explore the main considerations investors should consider.
Offices: white collar role changes
