Forum, Innovations, Latvia, Real Estate, Technology

Eight startup companies applied for the contest: four from Latvia and one from each Lithuania, Estonia, Belarus and Russia, offering to take the real estate (RE) industry to new level.

An international Property Technology Forum PropTech Riga 2018, devoted to innovation technologies, which start emerging in the real estate industry and reshaping it, is going to take place for the first time in Riga at RISEBA Architecture and Media Centre H₂O 6 on the 27^th and the 28^th of September. Experts of a number of European countries will share their experience in this field. The conference is organized by the Latvian Real Estate Association LANĪDA with a support of the General Sponsor - Bill.me.

To bring the most innovative PropTech technology ideas in the limelight and draw the attention of business angels or investment funds to IT startup companies of this field, a challenge contest for startups is going to be held along the forum. Expectations are that early-stage startups from the Baltic States, as well as other nearby countries enrol in this contest.

On the first day of the forum, the contest participants will be given three minutes to present their PropTech ideas on stage, and answer questions. One of them will head for the final, based on the public choice vote by the forum participants, and the remaining three finalists will be selected by a jury that will consist of RE industry and technologies professionals combined. Elected to be the jury chairman was a well-known entrepreneur in the Baltic States, developer, business angel and Serial Start-Up CEO Paul Oberschneider from the UK. The final tests are going to be held on the 28^th of September, when four best teams will contend for the main prize.

This challenge contest is organized by LANĪDA in cooperation with Startin.lv, Startup Estonia and Startup Lithuania and real estate company Latio, who will furnish the contest winner an opportunity to take part in the world’s largest PropTech event – MIPIM PropTech New York, which will take place on the 6^th November in the US.

Aļona Beļinska, CEO of the Latvian Startup Association Startin.LV, believes that events like PropTech Riga become a springboard to launch new yet already ambitious companies. “We, the startup association, are really happy to be the cooperation partners of the Latvian first PropTech forum and to offer, together with LANĪDA, an excellent opportunity to startups to join a professional community, to get to know industry news and get acquainted with industry experts. We believe that PropTech Riga is a great start for tighter cooperation between real estate industry companies and startups, for whom it may become a phase of development.  

Eight startup companies applied for the contest by now: four from Latvia and one from each Lithuania, Estonia, Belarus and Russia. A startup company to be eligible and to be enrolled as a contest participant needs to have IT solutions or products offering innovative approach to technologies, meanwhile improving the functionality of RE professionals, streamlining processes and improving the current business model.  Ideas will be brought before the jury and forum participants for their evaluation, such as, an integrated construction management system platform, a property valuation and real estate market analysis system, customer-handling instruments incorporating QR signal, real estate project co-financing platform, application for managing various tasks (teamwork organization, summarizing customer expectations, etc.), and other innovative PropTech products.

Application for the startup challenge contest will be open until the 16^th September (application form can be completed here).

More information about the conference at PropTechriga.lv