Meet 5 Irish innovators you should know about

Ireland is crammed full of tech talent. Big companies such as Google and Facebook are nestled in Dublin’s Silicon Docks and Microsoft has taken space at Ireland’s first WeWork, which opened its doors in June.

Dublin appears to be going through a tech boom as Tom Courtney, who founded technology-focused property community Dublin Prop Tech, explained: “The proptech scene is really starting to gather momentum and event to event we’re seeing more and more people attend. Dublin is a great testbed for many startups.”

With the tech scene growing in Ireland, we’ve compiled a list of companies you should know about.

Beagel provides property professionals with a range of sales platforms that can be rebranded by the company adopting them. These include, Beagel New, which is designed to meet the needs of the new homes market, Beagel Sold which allows agents to carry out binding property sales and an online auction platform, Beagel Bid, where buyers can bid on properties anytime and anywhere.

How does it work? The vendor and the agent first decide on the sales strategy, the agent then uploads all of the property details, prospects then register on the custom build site where their solicitors can access all legal documents before bidding starts. Once the agent gets a deposit, buyers can bid on their homes anywhere and anytime with all bids being legally binding.

Underbidders are automatically notified if they’re outbid and any last second bids extend the clock, so bidders don’t lose out. If an offer is accepted through Beagel Bid, the company charges 0.05% of the agreed price for using the service.

Popertee is an Artificial Intelligence platform that connects brands to temporary spaces. Founded in 2016, CEO Lucinda Kelly, saw a gap in the market for short-term rentals creating spaces where brands could pop-up and connect with their target audience. The startup will soon facilitate smarter locations for brands powered by AI through their software Popscore.

The software combines behavioural and social media data to enable companies to identify the best location for their pop-ups or marketing campaigns. The results displayed will be refined based on factors such as demographic selection of age, gender and socio-economic class combined with social media results.

Locations receive a score that ranges from 0 to 100 based on the success of the match to the demographics and interests of companies’ target markets. Clients that have used Popertee include Coca Cola, PlayStation, Virgin Media and Volvo.

Property Basecamp is a digital application that connects relocating employees to homes away from home powered by a digital relocation ‘buddy’. The company was founded in 2016 in Dublin and was part of the cohort of proptech innovators for Pi Labs’ latest accelerator.

The digital relocation ‘buddy’ can reduce property search time by up to 85% which in turn reduces relocation costs. The startup has the ability to streamline traditional offline relocation and rental market processes with the introduction of global tenant referencing through their tenancy passport, interactive virtual viewings and an instant booking facility.

Property Basecamp has also secured a partnership with digital banking alternative, Revolut, as one of the main issues for those relocating is setting up a bank account.

Standard Access uses audio-encrypted key technology, called the Sonic Handshake, to open doors and to help combat the challenges of managing enterprise level access to real estate. Aimed at landlords, property managers and estate agents, Standard Access allows users to issue keys via the cloud on a time and door-by-door basis. Access can also be determined by payment, for instance if office space is being rented out, as well as the level of employees and the appropriate areas in buildings for them.

This is also supported by an access management platform which provides property and space listings, booking, payment, access management, key management and data analytics. The price to install the hardware for standard access is €500 per door and annual audio keys cost from €25 on a sliding scale depending on the number of users. Click here to read a showcase written by Standard Access’ CEO, Damien Browne.

Property Button provides landlords, developers, councils, landlords, letting and estate agents with cloud-based applications to automate and streamline tasks during a property’s life-cycle. Founded in 2013, the company saw an opportunity to automate the process of signing up tenants with the aim to maximise occupancy by reducing vacancy periods.

Property Button’s communications platform, ‘Moving’, was created which documents a full audit trail from application to tenancy through to moving out, as well as access to secured tenant profile data including verified tenancy and employment references. Letting agents can view all applications in one place and identify top tenants and filter based on specific tenancy criteria as well as invite potential tenants to viewings. Property Button also identifies energy and media services available at properties to ensure utilities are set up on moving day.

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