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Pi Labs adds five companies to global portfolio

Pi Labs has commenced its ninth accelerator programme, where five start-ups from the UK, Canada and Israel will benefit from a 16-week growth and scale-up programme. 

The addition of this cohort grows the proptech VC’s global portfolio to 60 companies across three continents. As part of the programme, the start-ups will receive an initial investment, with the possibility of follow on funding, as well as mentoring from sector experts and access to Pi Labs’ ecosystem of real estate professionals, investors, advisors, venture partners and alumni from around the world. The companies have been selected on the basis of their potential to achieve at least a GBP100 million valuation at the time Pi Labs exits its investment.

The programme will take place remotely from March to June and help prepare the companies for scale by supporting their UK and European expansion strategies, securing clients and investors, and accelerating their commercial development. Pi Labs’ support also extends beyond capital investment and looks to build in resiliency and longevity in founders, to ensure that the companies have a real and lasting impact in the sector. This year’s cohort is Pi Labs’ most international group to date, in line with the company’s ambition to broaden its global footprint by investing in the most innovative proptech entrepreneurs from around the world. 

Over 1,100 companies were reviewed from 42 countries, as entrepreneurs look to capitalise on the acceleration in technological adoption in global real estate and establish a successful route to all major markets through Pi Labs’ proptech ecosystem, which is the sector’s largest. This represents a significant growth for Pi Labs’ accelerator program, which reviewed 600 business plans last year, as startups from around the world seek capital and sector expertise to navigate the growing proptech opportunity.

Faisal Butt, CEO and Founder of Pi Labs, says: “We selected these five start-ups out of  1,100+ applications after an intensely competitive process, because they can fill the glaring sustainability, ESG, operational and efficiency gaps in the real estate industry. Despite the continued global uncertainty due to the pandemic, we believe that property owners, developers and occupiers are presented with increased impetus to adopt proptech solutions to future proof operations and assets. Our current cohort has developed solutions in a range of proptech segments including ConTech, Robotics, CleanTech, workplace wellbeing and investment management, each of which we see as growth areas in a post-Covid world.”

“Our global expansion, backed by capital from leading real estate institutions such as Great Portland Estates, PATRIZIA, Assura, and Revcap, has allowed us to make over 10 new investments since the pandemic began. Covid has forced a reset in an industry that has been slow to adopt technological solutions, but faces an urgent need to improve asset quality, customer experience, portfolio management, ESG credentials, and construction practices. This has brought proptech solutions to the forefront of conversations on both the real estate and investment side, and we continue to actively look for the best start-ups that will reshape how the industry operates in the years to come. With the addition of our latest cohort, we are on track to grow our portfolio to 100 companies by 2025.”

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