Fundrise CEO Ben Miller on the cultural barriers to AI in real estate

by Andrea Zander

As artificial intelligence (AI) begins to reshape real estate investing, the biggest obstacles to adoption are not technical but cultural. According to Ben Miller, CEO of Fundrise and co-founder of RealAI, generational dynamics inside firms are slowing meaningful change even as AI is already embedded in day-to-day investment work. In an exclusive interview with IREI, Miller discusses why younger analysts quietly using AI are already producing core investment outputs, yet senior leaders worry about the erosion of alpha — a reaction that mirrors the slow adoption seen during earlier shifts, from the internet to cloud computing. He also outlines what institutional real estate firms must do now to move from experimentation to real impact as AI accelerates productivity, reshapes workflows, and alters the economics of the industry.

Ardian, ADIA to launch new real estate secondaries platform

by Released

Ardian has reached an agreement with a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), to launch a new real estate secondaries platform.

Avila Real Estate Capital announces second close of latest debt fund

by Released

Avila Real Estate Capital (AREC), private credit provider to the U.S. homebuilding industry, has held a second close for its latest debt fund, bringing total capital closed to approximately $200 million.

Cohen & Steers’ Seth Laughlin on public and private real estate convergence

by Andrea Zander

In the current market, public and private real estate are becoming increasingly complementary. In an interview with IREI, Seth Laughlin, senior vice president and head of real estate strategy and research at Cohen & Steers, said real estate is entering a phase in which improving fundamentals, shifting capital flows and evolving sector composition are reshaping how investors allocate across the asset class. Listed REITs are playing a larger role in that process, offering a more immediate read on valuations and access to sectors tied to long-term growth trends. As private markets continue to reprice and liquidity returns, investors are positioning for a recovery that is expected to unfold unevenly across sectors and strategies.