The key is that the company needs to find value in efficiency for adoption to become viable. “Inefficiencies are a great harbinger of where there is going to be tech disruption, but there has to be real value at stake,” says Sarkis. “That is a necessary ingredient.”

To conclude the discussion, the moderator, Bill Lanting, VP and head of commercial real estate debt origination at RealtyShares, asked if technology disruption is an evolution—meaning we all grow and learn together—or a revolution—meaning there will be some losses. Panelists were hoping for an evolution, with Cleary saying there wouldn't be anything that would fundamentally change the market. Sarkis and Rossi were less convinced, but said that evolution would make adoption easier. Evolution is the healthier way to go, but I think that there are going to be people that create revolutions,” said Sarkis. Rossi added, “It is happening very quickly. When things are bad, there will be more need for information. The next recession will drive even more technology adoption.”

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are the next major tech disruptors expected to shake the market, according to experts on the Investing Evolution: How Innovators Are Driving Change Through Technology panel at RealShare Apartments. Richard Sarkis, CEO and co-founder of Reonomy, called artificial intelligence the “next frontier” in technology integration, and his fellow panelists—Paul Cleary, COO of Money360 and Ron Rossi, VP of analytics at Investor Management Services LLC—agreed. “The quicker you can access data the better for your business, and that is where AI and machine learning come into play,” added Rossi.

The group addressed the commercial real estate industry's hesitance to adopt technology platforms, but insisted that the change is coming and early adopters would stand to profit in the future. “We are in an industry that is ripe for tech disruption. The ones paying attention now are the ones that are ripe to advance in this space,” said Rossi. He added that if you are not already thinking about ways to make your business more efficient through technology, it is almost too late.

For the early adopters, the next phase of technology is coming, and the focus of the panelists was all about integration and getting the right technologies into the right hands. Cleary explained that the next step is getting the data systems to talk to one another to create a system that works to solve the unique problems of the industry. “The thing about tech is you want it to adapt to your process,” he said, adding that no one wants to adapt to the technology.

This is where machine learning will dominate. All three panelists want to create better accessibility to data and ways to leverage data, rather just having more data. “[Real estate professionals] need help harnessing data and making it a source of value,” explained Sarkis. “They are already sitting on a treasure trove of data.”

The key is that the company needs to find value in efficiency for adoption to become viable. “Inefficiencies are a great harbinger of where there is going to be tech disruption, but there has to be real value at stake,” says Sarkis. “That is a necessary ingredient.”

To conclude the discussion, the moderator, Bill Lanting, VP and head of commercial real estate debt origination at RealtyShares, asked if technology disruption is an evolution—meaning we all grow and learn together—or a revolution—meaning there will be some losses. Panelists were hoping for an evolution, with Cleary saying there wouldn't be anything that would fundamentally change the market. Sarkis and Rossi were less convinced, but said that evolution would make adoption easier. Evolution is the healthier way to go, but I think that there are going to be people that create revolutions,” said Sarkis. Rossi added, “It is happening very quickly. When things are bad, there will be more need for information. The next recession will drive even more technology adoption.”