Software company Aareon is set to invest up to €100m (£86m) in Paris-based data management platform Stonal, to speed up the firm’s expansion in the UK and mainland Europe.
Stonal, which was founded in 2017, uses artificial intelligence to create a database of commercial and residential properties. Its offer includes ESG reporting and capex planning capabilities.
Earlier this year, it launched StonalGPT, which is thought to be the first generative AI solution designed for real estate investors.
The platform said the investment reflects the sector’s “growing appetite” for technological solutions to challenges such as meeting ESG expectations, increasing capex for greener properties, stricter building safety regulations and higher office vacancy rates on the back of remote networking.
Robin Rivaton, chief executive at Stonal, said: “The real estate industry, both residential and commercial, is at a crossroads. AI is a massive opportunity to reshape the sector in a remarkable way, but it still requires a significant amount of data on which to train these systems.”
Harry Thomsen, chief executive at Aareon, said its investment is a “strategic step” to strengthen its portfolio and “amplify” its proficiency in AI technology across the group. He also pointed to an “expected uptick in the need for robust data management solutions”.
Aareon, which is a software-as-a-service solutions provider, serves 13,000 customers totalling 18,000 homes across the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.
Stonal has more than 130 clients that manage a combined 2.1bn sq ft of space, including 1.6m homes. It employs 150 people and has a presence in the UK and France.
Lazard advised Stonal; Vulcain acted for Aareon.
Image by Gerd Altmann/Pixabay
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