What I Learned This Past Week - 1.24.23
All quiet on the western front
I’m sharing with whoever’s interested in what I learn as I try to remain clear-eyed about the opportunities for real estate and web3/AI.
Did I miss important news or a great article this week? In the likely event I did, please shoot me an email (mark@hurstx.com) and let me know!
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This Week’s Musings
For a welcome change we saw generally positive news around web3 this week, and web3 + real estate appeared especially rosy. However, the broader tech backdrop continued to be headlined by large layoff announcements at blue chip companies and my LinkedIn feed was unfortunately filled with first and second degree connections announcing that had been let go and were now looking for new opportunities. Having experienced this myself, my heart goes out to all these friends and acquaintances. Let me know if there is anything that I can do.
I’m heading to IBS next week. While I’m not expecting to run across many web3 or AI related companies, it’s a huge show and who knows what I’ll discover at the startup zone. Drop me a note if you are attending also and I’ll make sure we connect.
Informative Articles I Read
KB Home Launches Virtual New-Home Community In The Metaverse (BuilderOnline) - While it’s far-fetched (today) imaging anyone buying a home inside of Decentraland’s metaverse, I applaud KB Homes for taking the plunge and pushing the envelope.
Metaverse Landlords Are Creating a New Class System (Wired) - A mirror of the real world, with the have’s and the have not’s. I would argue that despite the hope for a utopian experience, the metaverses are going to largely end up not as welcoming as intended, with the platforms not feeling responsible (sounds awfully familiar to the mes of today’s social media platforms).
Blockchain Home Registry is on a mission to return home data to the people: Tech Review (Inman) - You need to have a subscription to Inman to read this article. I am hoping to get the BHR founder’s on the Proptech Espresso podcast later this quarter.
Podcasts/Events/Webinars/etc. That I Listened To
A.I., Machine Learning, and the Built Environment Fundamentals & Proptech Applications (Harvard GSD) - 3 day online course on AI and ML applications in the fields of Real Estate, Architecture, Landscape, and Urbanism.
Kodo Assets Launches First E-book On Real Estate Tokenization Made With The Help Of Artificial Intelligence (Digital Journal) - Figured it was worth noting this mashup of real estate tokenization and AI.
Innovative Companies I Discovered
Metahood - Platform for trading digital real estate.
People You Need To Follow On LinkedIn
Lorne Sugarman - CEO of Metaverse Group
Mert Karakus - Co-founder &CEO of Oda Studio
Web3/AI Announcements From Proptech Companies
CoinEquity receives trademark on Tokenize Real Estate (LinkedIn) - Congrats Vernon J and the EquityCoin team on securing this IP.
BHR Intergrates with First American (LinkedIn) - Exciting to see BHR announce this partnership and incorporate First American’s rich data set into their RealReports.
Spectre Unveils AI Tool For Agency Prospecting (EstateAgentToday) - Real estate agents in the UK get another AI tool for marketing.
Random But Important Things I Stumbled On
Blockchain and RVs Collide as CampersDAO Prepares to Buy a Real-World Campground (PR Newswire) - RVs & blockchain go together like peanut butter & jelly.
