Where the Built World Needs Painkillers: Five Priorities for Innovation

To launch Forum’s Built World Industry Council, we started with honest conversations with the people closest to the problems.

We spoke with our founding members across real estate operations, asset management, and proptech about the challenges that matter most. What we heard were not abstract trends or buzzwords, but the day-to-day obstacles that slow deals, stall innovation, and drain resources. These conversations revealed a simple truth: the built world does not lack technology, it lacks the connective tissue that makes technology deliver real outcomes.

What emerged from these conversations were patterns of friction that slow the industry down, but also signal where the biggest opportunities lie for founders.

1. Budget Season: The Painkiller Gap

Every year, CRE teams slog through budget season. The cycle stretches across months of vendor estimates, contract renewals, escalation reviews, and layered approvals. Even with ERP systems and emerging AI tools, the process remains largely manual, repetitive, and reactive. Property managers described days lost to pulling numbers into spreadsheets and chasing down outdated vendor information. Asset managers noted that contract terms are often buried in PDFs, making it hard to track escalations or renewal clauses. Legal and compliance teams get pulled in late, which leads to delays and rework. As one member put it, “Budget season is the pain that requires the most painkillers.” 

The opportunity is clear: tools that can automate contract analysis, normalize vendor data, and bring predictive forecasting into capital planning. Solutions that shorten the cycle and reduce the guesswork would not just ease frustration, they would also allow teams to shift focus from paperwork to strategy. A true “budget season painkiller” would win adoption quickly across the industry.

2. Computer Vision Is Replacing Sensors

IoT sensors were once seen as the answer for tracking safety incidents and monitoring how amenities were used. In practice, they proved costly to install, difficult to maintain, and fragmented across systems. Many owners have since shifted toward computer vision and AI-powered cameras, which are less expensive, easier to scale, and capable of generating predictive insights instead of just raw data points. As one member shared, “We moved away from sensors, cameras are smarter and more scalable.” Computer vision can flag unsafe behavior before an accident occurs, provide real-time occupancy insights, and help optimize amenity planning. The potential is significant, but members also acknowledged the risks, particularly around privacy, governance, and data security. These concerns will need to be addressed before widespread adoption is possible. The startups that can combine predictive intelligence with strong guardrails for privacy and compliance will be the ones to unlock the next phase of growth in this space.

3. Tenant Engagement: Execution Still Breaks Down

Tenant experience platforms have become a baseline expectation in Class A properties. Tenants now assume they will have access to mobile tools for work orders, amenity reservations, and community updates. Yet most deployments struggle to deliver value. Property teams often lack the time, staff, or expertise to create fresh content, while integrations with core systems like Yardi or MRI remain clunky. 

As a result, many platforms sit dormant after launch, leaving tenants frustrated and owners unable to tie engagement back to leasing or NOI. Members emphasized that the real issue is not whether the tools exist but whether they can be operated consistently. One member summed it up: “Everyone wants the experience, but no one has time to feed the beast.” The opportunity lies in making tenant engagement effortless: content-as-a-service, plug-and-play integrations, and analytics that connect usage to outcomes such as renewals, wellness reporting, or ESG goals. A solution that reduces the operational lift while still keeping tenants connected would be a game changer for owners across the spectrum, especially in mid-market portfolios.

4. ESG & Decarbonization: ROI Black Hole

Sustainability is a stated priority for nearly every owner, but execution continues to fall short. Members described setting aside millions for decarbonization or wellness initiatives, only to see a fraction of projects delivered. Leasing pressures and short-term NOI concerns often take precedence, while property managers default to addressing immediate complaints rather than long-term upgrades. Emerging technologies, such as CO₂-based heat pumps or electrification retrofits, remain underutilized because few firms are willing to be the first mover without clear proof of payback. 

As one member put it, “We need to show ESG in dollar terms, not just carbon reduction.” The pain point is not a lack of ambition, but the absence of tools that can model ROI at the asset level, simulate financial and emissions impact, and prioritize projects by both risk and return. Without financial attribution, ESG programs remain aspirational roadmaps rather than actionable strategies. Startups that help owners translate decarbonization into financial language like linking upgrades to insurance savings, tenant retention, or access to green finance, will be positioned to close one of the biggest gaps in the industry today.

5. Insurance & Climate Risk: Crisis Without Tools

Insurance, once treated as a predictable line item, has become a growing source of uncertainty for CRE leaders. Across the United States, property insurers are pulling back from markets exposed to wildfires, floods, and other climate threats. Members described carriers exiting key regions, premiums spiking unpredictably, and firms experimenting with alternatives such as captive insurance or parametric policies. 

The challenge is that few tools exist to evaluate these options or connect climate exposure to financial outcomes. Owners lack the ability to model how resilience investments such as flood barriers, HVAC retrofits, or envelope upgrades translate into premium reductions or improved coverage. Without that evidence, they are left reacting to cancellations and rate hikes instead of preparing proactively. Startups that integrate property data, climate models, and underwriting frameworks into actionable insurance platforms will fill a critical gap. The firms that bring financial clarity to resilience planning will not only help owners protect their portfolios, they will redefine how risk is managed across the built world.

The Bigger Picture

Across these themes, one pattern is clear: CRE does not need more point solutions. What it needs is connective infrastructure, tools that reduce operational lift, prove ROI in financial terms, and make adoption viable under regulatory and insurance pressures. For founders, the signal is straightforward. Products that can turn recurring pain points such as budgeting, insurance, and decarbonization into predictable outcomes will find a receptive market.

About Forum Ventures’ Industry Councils

The Built World Industry Council brings together senior executives from across commercial real estate, construction, and asset management to share perspectives, compare strategies, and engage with startup solutions that address their most pressing needs. These insights were drawn from discovery calls with founding members as we prepare for the Council’s first quarterly meeting.

Learn more about all of our industry councils here: https://www.forumvc.com/forum-industry-council

A Call for Founders!

We believe the opportunities surfaced through our Industry Councils are some of the most urgent and exciting in the market. That’s why we’re actively investing in the companies building solutions to these challenges.

If you’re already building a startup that aligns with the themes our Built World Council is exploring, pitch our accelerator here.

If you’re earlier on the journey, Forum’s AI Venture Studio backs ideas before a company even exists. We partner with industry veterans who’ve lived these problems firsthand and are ready to build transformative solutions. If that’s you, reach out to Ksenia@forumvc.com.

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