The Urban Land Institute (ULI) Europe has announced that Denmark’s Stykka, an innovator in sustainable, durable, digitally managed furniture products for the building industry, is the Nordic regional winner in the inaugural ULI PropTech Innovation Challenge (PIC), and the first of six regional winners to be revealed.

ULI PIC is a new, Young Leaders-led annual competition for entrepreneurs from across real estate, technology, and start-ups. The goal is to identify game-changing, scalable, competitive solutions that aim to enhance how we live, work, and play within our urban environment. Solutions must also reflect ULI’s mission priorities: decarbonisation and net zero, increasing housing attainability and affordability, and educating the next generation of leaders, all underpinned by a commitment to DEI.

Stykka’s solution is focused on a more environment-friendly building industry, introducing furniture products with a circular lifecycle that are modular, customisable, re-usable, durable, and which reduce carbon footprint and operational costs, all managed across portfolio via a digital operations platform. The platform connects all components used across a given portfolio, introducing efficiencies in operating, repairing, and upgrading inventory, and access to complete 3D models and operational and climate data, while digital twins contain complete specifications and product data. The product addresses the traditionally short life expectancy of kitchens, the most expensive to operate and most frequently disposed elements of building interiors, with products designed to be used for as long as possible and then repaired, refurbished, or recycled.

Commenting on their success, Jarl Engelbrecht Vindnæs, Founder of Stykka, said: “We offer a tangible and physical solution for the building industry. Our mission is to eliminate all waste from building operations, a global problem that contributes to million tons of waste every year. Our solutions replace single-use furniture through the use of technology, durable materials and by embracing a circular business model.”

Stykka was declared Nordic regional winner from finalists that also included R8 Technologies (AI driven solutions for decreasing energy consumption and emissions) and Chaos (AI driven location intelligence solution) from Finland; and Plant (software for reducing climate impacts) and Myrspoven AB (energy optimisation in buildings using AI) from Sweden.

Karoline Garder (DEAS), PIC Nordics Champion (coordinator), comments, “Stykka impressed the Nordic PIC Selection Committee with its focus on the future of construction, its resource efficiency, long-life design and adaptability, and minimised environmental impact, as well as the efficiencies introduced by technology in managing these components across portfolio. However, the competition was extremely tough between the five finalists, with less than a quarter point separating our winners from the joint second placed competitors, Chaos, and Myrspoven AB.”

The ULI PIC Nordics Jury Committee includes: Anders Dalskov (Alfa Ventures); Daniel Butenschøn (Proptech Norway); Daniel Kraft (Stronghold Invest); Henrik Botten Taubøll (Proptech Norway); Malin Meyer (Danielsen Spaceplanning); Nadim Stub (DEAS Group); Tuomas Rekonen (Tesi); and Thomas Wolff (DEAS Norway).

The ULI PIC is spearheaded by Thibault Weston Smith, Chair of ULI Europe Young Leaders, and Simon Abboud, Member of the ULI Europe Young Leader Executive Committee.

Thibault Weston Smith, Managing Director at Realty Corporation, said: “Congratulations to Stykka, and to all the finalists in the Nordic region of the ULI PIC competition. ULI PIC has had a great response in its first year, with more than 100 applications from forward-thinkers, disruptors, real estate industry stakeholders and players to pitch highly creative and transformative solutions focused on shaping the future of the real estate industry.”

Six regional (in-country) competitions, for France, Germany, Iberia, the Nordics, Switzerland, and the UK, form the first phase of ULI PIC, with start-ups invited to apply and to present in front of a local ULI PIC Selection Committee composed of diverse industry experts from across the built environment. The regional winners will then participate in the second phase, a European final, and present in front of a ULI Europe PIC Committee. The final winner will be announced at the ULI Europe C Change Summit in Copenhagen on 11 October 2023.

In addition to unrivalled industry exposure through the ULI international network, winners will be awarded a one-year ULI membership providing access to research content, event, webinars, education and mentorship programs, knowledge sharing and connections with a multidisciplinary global network of a real estate and land use professionals.

For more information, please visit: https://europe.uli.org/young-leaders-proptech-innovation-challenge-pic/

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Notes to Editors

About the Urban Land Institute

• The Urban Land Institute is a non-profit education and research institute supported by its members. Its mission is to shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide. Established in 1936, the institute has over 48,000 members worldwide representing all aspects of land use and development disciplines.
• ULI’s mission priorities that the organisation will be focusing on over the next three years include:
  • decarbonising the real estate sector and targeting net zero;
  • educating the next generation of diverse real estate leaders; and,
  • increasing housing attainability in communities around the world.
• ULI has almost 5,500 members in Europe across 15 National Council country networks. For more information, please visituli.org, or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram.