(Yicai) Dec. 19 — Despite the long-term slump in China's real estate sector, some real estate developers have begun applying artificial intelligence across their operations, with AI technology increasingly benefitting every stage of business, from land investment to after-sales service.
The adoption of AI reflects developers' efforts to find new growth drivers and improve efficiency in a challenging market environment. Industry players told Yicai at the recent Real Estate AI Forum that vertical applications of AI have already penetrated core business processes and are nearing a tipping point.
At the forum, technology leaders from several large development companies said AI is being implemented in investment analysis, land acquisition, customer research, product design, construction, marketing and customer service. According to them, vertical AI applications in the real estate sector are currently poised to expand rapidly.
“One of our projects used AI technology to accurately screen target customers and conduct marketing activities before its launch this year,” a senior executive from China's top five development companies said at the forum. “With this approach, we sold approximately 1,700 units and saw clear revenue growth,” the executive said, adding that given the clear value created by AI-driven marketing, the company intends to continue to invest heavily in these technologies.
Bu Shengdong, general manager of Greentown China's digital construction center, said the company's business units are keen on using AI tools. Greentown has already rolled out applications such as smart wearable badges for staff, an AI-powered marketing system, and an AI-based drawing cloud platform, and is likely to significantly increase its investment in AI-assisted design next year.
Zheng Yi, deputy general manager of Yuexiu Property's digital intelligence development center, said the company's employees have jointly developed more than 2,500 AI assistants. Yuexiu has also established a dedicated project team to implement AI applications across marketing, construction, commercial operations, property management, and office functions.
“With the rapid expansion of vertical AI applications, the organizational structure and operating model of real estate developers will undergo major changes,” a senior asset management expert at a development company based in eastern China told Yicai. Consumers' home buying decisions, price negotiations, renovation choices and asset preservation strategies are also likely to be reshaped by AI, the person said.
Further differentiation is expected in the used housing market as well. Older properties that cannot be intelligently upgraded may depreciate more quickly and be phased out sooner, the official added.
Zhong Junhao, secretary general of the Shanghai AI Industry Association, said that real estate is a huge industry that is closely connected to the broader economy and people's lives, and every link from planning and design to development, construction, marketing and community services has great potential for intelligent upgrading.
In certain scenarios, AI's performance is already sufficient to partially replace existing specialized roles, Zhong said. “This is not alarmist rhetoric, but a realistic reflection of the productivity leaps brought about by technological advances,” he added.
Editor: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine
