The Urban Land Institute (ULI) Europe has announced that Verv, a company innovating AI based solutions for energy and carbon reductions from air conditioning, heat pumps and large electrical equipment, has been named the UK winner of the PropTech Innovation Challenge (PIC).

Launched earlier this year, ULI PIC is an annual Young Leaders-led initiative for entrepreneurs from across real estate, technology, and start-ups. Its focus is to identify game-changing, scalable, competitive solutions for enhancing 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, underpinned by a commitment to DEI.

Shortlisted from 30 entrants, the UK competition brought together seven PropTech businesses, including Verv, Construction Carbon, PropEco, bGrid, DepositPass, Roost, and Synergetic Technologies, to pitch their ideas to a ULI PIC Selection Committee, with Verv subsequently declared the UK regional winner.

Air conditioning and large electrical equipment contribute to high levels of carbon emissions and are a significant factor in e-waste. Verv’s technology and insights helps to reduce carbon emissions and secure energy savings through AI-based solutions such as the Smart AI Isolator and predictive maintenance software to help customers manage their energy and carbon consumption and wastage more efficiently.

Peter Davies, Founder, Verv, said, “Among the most pressing challenges we face globally are the need to reduce emissions from carbon, and the need to make energy savings both in terms of consumption and cost. We’re focused on providing those solutions that significantly contribute towards the critical net-zero targets of all our customers, especially air conditioning, which can consume almost 30% of a building’s total energy costs. We are the UK experts at reducing these consumption costs.”

“We are pleased to have been named the UK winner in the first ULI PIC competition off the back of our work to date and are looking forward to competing in the Europe-wide final.”

Kingma Ma (PT1) and Katherine Gunderson (Grand Bequest) are both PIC UK Champions (coordinators). Katherine Gunderson comments, “Congratulations to Verv, and to all the shortlisted UK finalists that competed in the inaugural ULI PIC competition. The proposals put forward by all our competitors were inspiring, and it’s clear that the PropTech sector is delivering many cutting-edge solutions to help the built environment sector navigate the challenges ahead, including on how reach net zero and address carbon emissions.”

Ben Collins, ULI UK Executive Director, said, “It has been estimated that there are between 700-800 PropTech companies in the UK. It’s a dynamic sector, serving the property industry in terms of the solutions it contributes, but it is also very much a part of the industry. The first ULI PIC has showcased the sheer creativity, problem solving, and entrepreneurialism that makes up the focus of the UK PropTech sector, and it was a real privilege to participate in the competition jury this year.”

The ULI UK PIC Selection Committee includes Ami Kotecha (Amro Partners); Roelof Opperman (CogNovum); Saminder (Sammy) Pahal, (UK PropTech Association); Valentina Shegoyan (ULI UK Technology and Real Estate Council & Innovation Council Member); Imogen Thompson (Deloitte, and ULI UK Young Leader Chair); and, Ben Collins, ULI UK Executive Director.

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.

The first phase of ULI PIC has comprised six regional (in-country) competitions held across Europe, including France, Germany, Iberia, the Nordics, Switzerland, and the UK. Each regional winner will go on to participate in the European final in late September, presenting to the ULI Europe PIC Committee. The overall winner will then be announced on 11 October during the ULI Europe C Change Summit in Copenhagen.

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.

Please visit: https://europe.uli.org/young-leaders-proptech-innovation-challenge-pic/.

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Notes to Editors

About the Urban Land Institute (ULI)

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 has over 5,000 members in Europe across 15 National Council country networks.