Key Takeaways
- • Executives from Prologis, BGO, Kimco Realty, Vivmark and Brookfield told a CREtech New York 2026 panel that major CRE firms are embracing AI rather than fearing its downsides.
- • Brookfield uses AI as an additional voice in investment decisions, with its tools projecting five years of rents every quarter across roughly 9,000 U.S. submarkets.
- • Vivmark, which manages 180,000 homes, handles millions of AI-initiated resident interactions annually and uses the data to shape building design and staffing touch points.
- • Kimco has reorganized its IT unit into an Office of Innovation and Transformation and is applying AI to lease abstraction and construction pricing, which it says can cut bidding from weeks to hours.
- • Panelists cited strong fundamentals alongside AI adoption: Prologis completed 60 million square feet of leasing in Q3, and Kimco reported occupancy and tenant retention at all-time highs.
Summary
Major commercial real estate firms are treating artificial intelligence as a source of operational advantage rather than a threat, according to a panel at CREtech New York 2026 reported by GlobeSt. The session, moderated by Vaibhav Gujral, senior partner at McKinsey & Company, featured Carter Andrus, chief operating officer of Prologis; Amy Price, co-president of BGO; Ross Cooper, president and chief investment officer of Kimco Realty; Pamela Thomas, executive vice president of portfolio and asset management at Vivmark; and Lauren Young, managing partner of real estate at Brookfield.
Speed and efficiency were recurring themes. Cooper said Kimco transformed its IT unit into an Office of Innovation and Transformation and is formalizing how capital allocation and product decisions are made. He cited automated lease abstractions to speed lease execution and automated construction pricing, which he said can be completed in hours rather than the weeks a traditional bidding process can take. "Every day that we press that timeline, it's cash flow in our pocket," he said.
Brookfield uses AI as an additional input into investment decisions, according to Young. She said the technology projects five years of rents every quarter and now covers roughly 9,000 U.S. submarkets, though she noted the model's output has not yet been formally back-tested. Vivmark, which operates 180,000 homes, deploys AI across much of its business; Thomas said the firm handles millions of AI-initiated resident interactions annually, tracks where residents need more contact, and uses resident preference data to inform building design. Thomas also described AI coaching agents that help team leaders manage direct reports, adding that staff overseeing about 30 people have become more strategic in their work.
The panel framed AI adoption against a backdrop of solid operating conditions. Andrus said Prologis completed 60 million square feet of leasing in Q3, with logistics recovering more broadly, vacancy declining and rent growth returning, and e-commerce and advanced manufacturing driving demand. Cooper described Kimco's fundamentals as the strongest in its history across about 570 shopping centers totaling 100 million square feet, citing record occupancy and renewal rates and minimal new supply. Young said Vivmark has recorded nine consecutive quarters of positive sequential absorption. Panelists broadly expressed optimism that AI will continue to support decision-making and productivity across the sector.
Speed and efficiency were recurring themes. Cooper said Kimco transformed its IT unit into an Office of Innovation and Transformation and is formalizing how capital allocation and product decisions are made. He cited automated lease abstractions to speed lease execution and automated construction pricing, which he said can be completed in hours rather than the weeks a traditional bidding process can take. "Every day that we press that timeline, it's cash flow in our pocket," he said.
Brookfield uses AI as an additional input into investment decisions, according to Young. She said the technology projects five years of rents every quarter and now covers roughly 9,000 U.S. submarkets, though she noted the model's output has not yet been formally back-tested. Vivmark, which operates 180,000 homes, deploys AI across much of its business; Thomas said the firm handles millions of AI-initiated resident interactions annually, tracks where residents need more contact, and uses resident preference data to inform building design. Thomas also described AI coaching agents that help team leaders manage direct reports, adding that staff overseeing about 30 people have become more strategic in their work.
The panel framed AI adoption against a backdrop of solid operating conditions. Andrus said Prologis completed 60 million square feet of leasing in Q3, with logistics recovering more broadly, vacancy declining and rent growth returning, and e-commerce and advanced manufacturing driving demand. Cooper described Kimco's fundamentals as the strongest in its history across about 570 shopping centers totaling 100 million square feet, citing record occupancy and renewal rates and minimal new supply. Young said Vivmark has recorded nine consecutive quarters of positive sequential absorption. Panelists broadly expressed optimism that AI will continue to support decision-making and productivity across the sector.
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