Dubai gears up for debut property tech show
DUBAI, June 5, 2018
More than 400 senior delegates from the GCC representing real estate development, community and facilities management and property research and development, will be at the inaugural PropTech Middle East 2018, a first-of-its-kind event to be held in Dubai, UAE, this October.
Over the past few years, the rapid adoption of technology in the financial services sector has changed the traditional banking models and led to the emergence and widespread acceptance of mobile banking, biometric banking, and digital wallets, thereby simplifying how consumers bank in today’s day and age.
This global transformation of the banking landscape saw the rise of FinTech, said indusry experts.
In a similar manner, technology has permeated to the retail, hospitality, manufacturing industries as well, with the property sector being the latest industry to witness a transformation.
The convergence of technology and property has wholly transformed the traditional housing market – from property management to marketing, sales to transactions, said the experts.
Using technologies such as big data and analytics, virtual reality, blockchain, artificial intelligence, 3D printing and drones, the entire property buying, management, leasing, marketing and selling process has been transformed, tyhey stated.
The various stakeholders involved in the property sector such as, property developers, banks, property management firms, real estate agents, asset management, and facility management companies are able to harness these technologies and customise offerings to provide the end customer with improved solutions, the experts pointed out.
The impact of technology in the property sector has been such that it has led to the emergence of the term PropTech, which is pegged to be the next game changer after FinTech, they added.
In the Middle East, Dubai has been a frontrunner in adopting technology to offer its citizens a better quality of life and achieve its ambition of becoming the world’s smartest city by 2021.
Across all departments within the government, various technologies are implemented to deliver better, faster and more efficient services. In line with this, Dubai Land Department recently introduced the Real Estate Self Transaction (REST) platform that enables the complete digital management of real estate transactions, thereby eliminating paper documents and reducing brokerage procedures.
Against this backdrop, Dubai is set to host the first PropTech conference from October 29 to 30 at Sofitel Dubai The Palm Resort & Spa.
Organized by Expotrade Global, the PropTech Middle East 2018 will highlight the technological innovations and digital transformation taking place in the real sector.
In its inaugural edition, over 40 industry experts will be participating as speakers and panelists at the conference, highlighting on how technology is influencing the rapid transformation of the real estate industry in the region while emphasizing on the trends and developments witnessed.
The two-day event will cover the future of the property technology industry with topics on drones changing the face of real estate, proptech transforming the traditional housing market, impact of 3D printing in real estate, and blockchain implementation strategies, to name a few.
Proptech guru James Dearsley will deliver the keynote address at PropTech Middle East 2018.
"PropTech has been growing in significance globally as the digitization of real estate gathers steam. Investment into the sector has exploded, growing over 160 per cent from 2016 to 2017 alone and there is a clear geographical shift. The trends had started in the US and the Far East - 60 per cent of all funding was in APAC - but are now starting to take hold in Europe and the Middle East," he stated.
Over 15 industry experts have already confirmed their participation at the two-day event - Karim Nagaty, Chief Marketing Officer, Dubai Properties; Faisal Ali, Group CIO, Gargash; Craig Plumb, Head of Research - Real Estate/Property, JLL; Joseph Morris, Partner - Head of Capital Markets & Investment Transactions Middle East, Knight Frank; and Ajay Rathi, Group Senior Director, Executive IT Strategist and Business Partner, Meraas; are some of the early speaker confirmations received.
The conference will also provide a platform for startup ventures offering solutions in the property sector to participate at the region’s only proptech event. Apart from networking with relevant stakeholders, and showcasing their marquee solutions, the two-day event offers an opportunity to budding entrepreneurs to meet investors, and participate in Startup Competition to stand a chance to win $5000.-TradeArabia News Service