There's an intrinsic tension between technology companies and the world. Tech wants to push forward through innovation and business opportunity and the world often interrupts to point out that sometimes solutions can incorporate significant problems. Navigating the spaces offers challenges, according to Christopher Yip, a partner at RET Ventures, a VC firm actively investing in technology in the commercial real estate space.

An example in 2021 was the bankruptcy of construction tech startup Katerra. At the time, Marc Liebman, Katerra's chief transformation officer said in a filing, "In pursuit of a fully integrated business model, Katerra has acquired more than twenty companies that are leaders in their sector of the construction industry, including in general contractor business specializing in commercial, residential, and multi-family projects." And that was a definite problem.

"We spent a lot of time thinking about that," Yip, who says that he's not an expert in the formerly high-flying Katerra, tells GlobeSt.com. "We have investments in the space. Everybody knows [bringing technology to construction] needs to happen. There needs to be productivity improvements on site and deeper integration of technology. I think Katerra was a lack of success in execution and scope. Having a startup as your general contractor as your full-source supply chain adds a lot of risk to what is already a risky activity."