Propcorn, a pioneering AI-powered search engine for the property industry, announced the completion of its €600k pre-seed funding round. The financing round was led by Austrian business angel Hansi Hansmann and his Hans(wo)men Group. The investor consortium was complemented by Calm/Storm, and Weilburg Ventures, the start-up investment arm of the Weilburg Family Office.
Propcorn specializes in identifying redensification and new build potential and uses Artificial Intelligence to optimise urban development and property investment.The company plans to use this backing to change the proptech landscape for good.
The Austrian proptech was founded in early 2024 by Niki Stadler (CEO), Benjamin Buchta (CPO) and Bertty Contreras (CTO). Together, they are pursuing the goal of redefining the use of technology in the property sector.
“We are thrilled to have such prestigious investors on our side who share our vision to transform the property industry,” said Niki Stadler, Founder and CEO of Propcorn. “With this funding, we will accelerate our product development and bring our AI-powered search engine to market so that urban planners, developers and investors can discover new opportunities with unprecedented efficiency and accuracy.”
Optimising property portfolios
Propcorn’s platform will go live in September 2024 and offers all users a free trial period. The service will provide property professionals with a powerful tool to identify underutilized land and optimize property portfolios, making the process of urban planning and investment faster and more data-driven.
“The founding team has identified a key pain point in the property industry and is ideally positioned to solve it with the help of its AI-driven platform. We are delighted to be part of this,” commented Hansi Hansmann, Business Angel and Chairman of the Hans(wo)men Group.
The financing round was legally supported by RPCK Rastegar Panchal Rechtsanwälte Keyvan & Katharina Rastegar. Propcorn is one of Austria’s first FlexCo start-ups, demonstrating its innovative approach not only in terms of technology, but also in terms of modern corporate structures, such as employee participation through the possible allocation of tax-privileged enterprise value shares (UWA).
Lucanus Polagnoli, Founding Partner and CEO at Calm/Storm Ventures, added: “We are pleased to support Propcorn’s mission with our Austrian Founders Fund, not only because we believe in the founding team, but also because we see the ever-increasing strategic importance of AI-driven technologies. We believe that this development will affect all industries, especially the property sector.”
Sebastian Scholda, Managing Director at Weilburg Ventures, said: “Propcorn solves the problems of many market participants in the property industry in an efficient way. In addition to property investors, for whom Propcorn provides a powerful tool with its innovative approach, Propcorn is also revolutionizing urban development and urban planning. Propcorn’s solutions can counteract the increasingly criticized issue of ‘soil sealing’ in particular, as redensification can be assessed much more easily and quickly. This diversity and practical relevance were decisive factors in our investment.”
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/09/vienna-based-propcorn-secures-e600k-pre-seed-for-ai-based-property-platform/
