We are thrilled to present this insightful Q&A session with Ivo Van Breukelen, a leading figure in the global PropTech landscape. As a Managing Partner of The Proptech Connection (US/Euro), Ivo draws upon his extensive experience in real estate investments and technology to shape the future of the built environment.

His dedication to innovation and keen eye for emerging trends have placed him at the forefront of the PropTech industry. Ivo spearheads the tech origination team at The Proptech Connection, constantly identifying transformative technologies and ensuring his firm provides unparalleled market analysis and insights to its real estate clients.

Beyond his role at The Proptech Connection, Ivo's expertise is highly sought after. He regularly shares his knowledge as a speaker at prestigious industry events and a guest lecturer at renowned institutions like Harvard and MIT. His passion for innovation is evident in his work with early-stage startups, where he offers invaluable guidance on positioning themselves for success and attracting investment.

In this Q&A session, we delve into Ivo's insights on the most exciting PropTech trends, his advice for navigating the current market landscape, and his vision for the future of the built environment.

#PTS: With your finger on the pulse of global PropTech innovation, what are 2-3 emerging trends you find most exciting and potentially transformative for the real estate industry?

#Ivo van Breukelen: Globally, the demarcation of traditional real estate sectors is being eroded. COVID accelerated this: homes being used as offices, the hotel-isation of offices through offerings in amenity-centric assets and the tentative steps into a digital world; just three such examples illustrating this. This has meant that the number of technologies applicable to real estate has increased.

The built environment is at the beginning of its tech adoption journey. Much work has been put into building data frameworks and bringing internal tech systems up to date. We are now seeing many companies leverage this investment, to enable their portfolios or how they develop, to meet the ever-evolving needs of their customers. As such, the number of tech offerings will grow as well as the demand for tech, as asset usage continues to evolve.

There are several drivers for each region’s Proptech ecosystem. As adoption rates continue to increase, the global rollout and offering of technologies will accelerate. Point solutions particularly, will be augmented by systems that can work with multiple hardwares and softwares.

Rising demand for housing, infrastructural improvements and a more mobile demographic is attracting investments seeking new horizons to participate in the development narrative of APAC.

Additionally, since the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was signed last year, covering the largest free trade area in the world, APAC is fast becoming the epicenter for Proptech.

Finally, although economic markers may be unclear, capital markets continue to show their resilience. Good opportunities are still thriving and sought after.

#PTS: As a leading PropTech advisor, what advice would you give to early-stage startups in the space to position themselves for success and attract investment?

#Ivo van Breukelen: It is really important to differentiate yourself in the market and be able to articulate your value proposition to potential customers or investors, especially given the challenging macro environment. We at The Proptech Connection help proptech start-ups on their growth journey where we work with management on understanding the narrative and USP, benchmark against competitors- globally and locally, help refine materials and financial models and facilitate engagement with the best strategic partners in our 100,000+ global network of decision-makers. After all you only get one chance, and there’s always pockets of capital, or people that you do not know or do not have access to.

That’s where we step in.

#PTS: Looking ahead, how do you see the role of venture capital evolving in shaping the PropTech landscape? What opportunities and challenges do you foresee for investors?

#Ivo van Breukelen: There are several VCs laying off staff and struggling to raise new capital, especially in the US + Euro. VC’s are doubling down on protecting portfolio companies to “winter the storm”, instead of allocating capital into new deals. That being said, early stage high quality deals, with strong teams and traction will still be funded, at least that is what we are seeing with our clients and network.

#PTS: As a thought leader and guest lecturer at prestigious institutions, what key message do you convey to future generations about the importance of technology and innovation in shaping a sustainable and equitable future for the built environment?

#Ivo van Breukelen: Real estate is dramatically changing and there are many challenges ahead. Where there are challenges, there are opportunities.

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