Founder of The Urban Developer, Adam Di Marco, defines proptech as “technology that is aimed at the real estate industry and attempts to change the way we buy, sell, finance and manage property.”

At its most effective, it’s technology that’s putting humans back into the property equation, revolutionising user experiences in all physical and operational aspects of working and living environments.   

Here are 5 platforms (and their general arenas) that we see making a bigger mark in 2018 – from tenant acquisition through to safety and engagement, shaping the future of real estate one app and one algorithm at a time:

1. I spy with my little eye: an innovative new way to view property

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Imagine being able to inspect and – more importantly – experience a property before setting foot in the building? In terms of attracting tenants without being hindered by their geographical location or prescriptive inspection times, platforms like EyeSpy360 are shaping the future of property.

It all works via panoramic 360 VR photos uploaded to the app by the leasing agent, opening up their building for virtual inspection from prospective tenants all over the world. And the rest of the industry is seeing similar innovation as 3D imaging technologies begin to govern the architectural process and filter through to later stages of the sales cycle.

In fact, we predict that the concept of a display suite or open inspection will soon be entirely replaced by AR and VR experiences, lowering costs and improving resource efficiency tenfold.  

2. Desk-hunt no longer with intelligent assistance

As hot-desking, open office plans and co-working have shaken up the modern workplace, various systems have done their best to manually book desks, block out meeting rooms and lock in conference spaces. But with Space Connect, ambient intelligence is automating and streamlining this process with unprecedented ease.

Using intelligent sensor technologies, workers are automatically checked in and out of spaces as they move around the office environment, and the technology building or office managers have ultimate insight into how spaces are being used. If there’s a no-show, Space Connect knows, and immediately lists the space as vacant again. And with AI integration, the algorithms are constantly working to predict what your space requirements are tomorrow, and next week, until you change your ways.

3. Revisiting workplace safety for guests and employees

Ever visited an unfamiliar building late at night, alone and unsure exactly what to expect from the environment? Perhaps you’ve found yourself locked out of a site after hours? StaySafe is a prop tech platform that uses cloud-based monitoring, wearables, satellite services, SMS broadcasting and a smartphone interface to connect employees with employers no matter their location.

Workers in any industry – from engineers scaling high-rises to cleaning professionals in remote areas – can rely on technology to ensure their personal protection in any environment (even where mobile reception poses challenges).

Elsewhere, embedded sensor and monitoring systems are helping to prevent tragic events (such as mass shooting in the US). And PropTech thought leader James Dearsley recently voiced his excitement at the safety prospects these monitoring technologies pose for aged or disabled members of the building community, too. Smart infrastructure will help detect falls, monitor physical activity and control the environment (eg. heating).

4. We need new tenants: High-tech leasing assistance

Finding the perfect office space is a rigorous process, dotted with days spent sifting through irrelevant listings, hours spent wasted on potential renters who weren’t perfectly suited, and agents who prove difficult to work with. Jagonal is changing this paradigm with an affordable and flexible commercial property search engine – taking the admin of filtering through the property market off the hands of the renters and experts and into the hands of smart technology.

The affordable and flexible app portfolio is the most advanced of its kind in Australia, housing over 65% of the country’s vacant office spaces, and revolutionising the traditional, inflexible advertising model by refining search capacities to only show relevant results with extensive details. This not only makes the user experience for the prospective renter a whole lot more streamlined, but also helps to ensure that only relevant, truly interested new occupiers will take the next step with the agent – no time wasted for either party.

The platform’s search filters are more powerful than any other, allowing interested parties to refine their search down to the smallest of details – like showers, childcare, bike parking and nearby amenities. And, like EyeSpy360, Jagonal also proffers state-of-the-art 3D viewing capabilities, taking the added admin out of the next layer of inspection. With innovative technology taking cumbersome bureaucratic tasks off your hands, you can get back to what matters most: cultivating a community of the world’s best (and happy) tenants - who want to hang around for long.

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5. The modern concierge: making villages out of verticals

At Equiem, our core driver is community. And we are not misguided: JLL recently released their Human Revolution report, which dove into the mindsets of the modern workforce – and the results? “Workspaces designed with healthy, happy employees in mind will be more likely to attract talent.” And “people crave human interactions and are far more inspired by people than robots or AI.”

So, our custom-built platforms combine an online micro-intranet of communication and collaboration for building staff and tenants, with onsite activations and personal services - revolutionising the property management and working experience in buildings across the globe.

Plus, Equiem’s portals employ competitions, polls and data capture campaigns to gauge intel and feedback about and from the building members and improve services in response.

Because knowing your community is the first step to implementing better engagement strategies, integrating better technology and enabling real estate innovation for years to come.