AI in real estate: R8 Technologies’ solution cuts CO2 by 20%

November 21, 2023

by Blessing Oyetunde

A beacon of innovation and impact, Estonian tech company R8 Technologies stands at the forefront of real estate solutions amid volatile energy prices and the soaring demand for sustainability. Since its founding in 2017, the company has pioneered AI-driven property management across Europe, stewarding over 3 million square metres of real estate, managing 3% of Estonia’s energy consumption, and delivering over €7 million in savings for property owners in 2022 alone.

At the heart of the company’s mission lies a pressing global concern: the real estate sector’s hefty 40% contribution to worldwide CO2 emissions. “The current methods of buildings’ operations require advancement in digitalisation and automation,” notes Siim Täkker, R8 Technologies’ CEO. “Our data-driven AI solutions not only bolster operational efficiency but deliver considerable cost reductions and cut CO2 emissions by about 20%.”

Introducing R8 Jenny: the human-centric AI for sustainable real estate

The R8 Digital Operator, “Jenny,” is the company’s flagship AI solution, which breathes new life into commercial buildings as sustainable entities. This data-driven AI system is a revolution in human-centric artificial intelligence, meticulously engineered to operate buildings with unprecedented efficiency. It’s a sophisticated digital assistant which integrates into the operational heart of each building, the building management system (BMS), without the need for new infrastructure.

“Our vision of AI is to be more than smart— our solution is intuitive and capable of ensuring comfort and efficiency with little to no human intervention. R8 Jenny understands the heartbeat of a building and its uniqueness, caring for it,” Siim says, highlighting how the solution has evolved to meet the nuanced demands of real estate. This human-centric approach to AI development has been vital in forging tools facility managers can trust and rely on. And the result speaks for itself!

Significant savings and environmental milestones at Mainor Ülemiste

Mainor Ülemiste’s CEO, Ursel Velve, reports transformative savings and environmental advancements attributed to R8 Technologies’ solution implementation.  “In 2023, the deployment of R8’s Digital Operator enabled us to realise significant savings of nearly EUR 122,000 in reduced heating and electricity expenses for the Öpik buildings. Additionally, we witnessed a substantial environmental benefit, cutting down our carbon emissions by 269 metric tons, equivalent to conserving around 1300 trees,” Ursel states. 

“Their system has not only streamlined our operational costs but also enabled us to make more environmentally friendly choices,” she highlights. The capabilities of R8 Jenny have been especially noteworthy, with around 113,000 system adjustments within the last year—a feat beyond human capacity, according to Ursel. Recognising the strategic advantage of the data gathered through R8 Technologies’ system, she says, “The insights allow us to make informed decisions, steering us toward constructing more sustainable and energy-efficient buildings.” 

Looking ahead, Ursel confirms the ongoing partnership with R8 Technologies is set to deepen, particularly within the innovative Ülemiste City Test City. “Within the framework of the Test City, R8 Technologies actively engages in collecting and leveraging data to develop their new models,” she reveals. This initiative marks the campus as a testing ground for R8’s new developments, showcasing a progressive step towards sustainable real estate and the bankability of greentech. 

The journey to innovation

Looking back, the road to this point has been exciting yet far from straightforward. Siim recalls the stormy early days when the team sought to transform extensive research into a viable product. Without existing models on the market, the startup first embarked on its journey with no blueprint, and this came bearing its fair share of challenges.

Their relentless efforts resulted in the first product launch in 2017, marking a significant milestone. But, they soon realised that the complexities of real-world applications were greater than anticipated. “Our initial offerings, while groundbreaking, didn’t fully meet the nuanced needs of the market,” Siim admits. The team found themselves back at the drawing board, reimagining their solutions. Ultimately, they did refine their offerings, finding the sweet spot between operational efficiency and user-centric design.

The team today? A dynamic collective of over 50 individuals, including over 10 with Ph.D. qualifications, bringing extensive knowledge from various domains, like facility management, real estate, HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning), and information technology. Merging practical know-how with scientific insight, they have successfully released numerous product functionalities that boost customer satisfaction, enhance operational efficiency, and address evolving customer needs.

The green shift

Peering into the future, Siim anticipates a substantial shift in the energy sector towards proactive and flexible management of green energy, where energy transcends mere production and extends to active management on the consumer’s side. This is where R8 Technologies emerges as a catalyst, bridging the gap between energy consumption and sustainable practices. As renewable sources take centre stage, Siim emphasises the increasing significance of consumers and companies like R8 in effectively managing and stabilising energy usage.

Delving deeper, he highlights the imminent overhaul of the regulatory landscape in Europe. “A shift is underway towards unified sustainable practices and regulations,” he notes. As these new regulations materialise, he envisions fragmented energy markets being consolidated into an integrated entity guided by a shared understanding and streamlined practices. 

Within this evolving framework, Siim Täkker is confident in R8 Technologies’ solutions to expand even further and help more markets manage and optimise energy usage adeptly. “Our technology is tailored for an energy and carbon-efficient future, ensuring smarter, more sustainable real estate practices,” he asserts. With numerous projects in the pipeline, including expansion into Asia, the company intends to not only enhance today’s buildings but also shape a future where real estate development is synonymous with carbon neutrality.

Resouce: e-estonia

Cut to order: How Estonia’s Fractory built a cloud-based manufacturing platform

October 18, 2023

by Justin Petrone

Like so many great things, it all started with a beer in Tartu, Estonia’s frolicsome and freewheeling university town. Martin Vares, a mechanical engineer by trade, was responsible for designing and ensuring the production of natural gas filling stations but was spending too much of his time hounding manufacturers to see if they could produce his industrial and engineering solutions.

“I was spending 20 per cent of my time on emails and phone calls,” says Vares. Most companies in the industrial space don’t produce all the parts necessary for manufacturing themselves, he notes. Rather, the part manufacturing is outsourced to third parties with the correct, often expensive machinery. Vares would send out emails with his 2D drawings attached, inquiring about quotes and manufacturing lead times, only to have to call up to find out they were booked or didn’t have the capabilities.

This led him to commiserate with a friend over a beer. It was September 2016. Before the War in Ukraine heated up. Before the pandemic. Donald Trump hadn’t even been elected president. Vares told his friend that, as an engineer, he found it ridiculous that he was spending hours chasing manufacturers on the phone. The human transaction in the procurement process was slowing things down. Something had to be done. From that rant emerged a new company.

“We discussed it and came up with the idea of a marketplace platform,” says Vares.

They called it Fractory.

Estonian made

According to Vares, Fractory is an outgrowth of Estonia’s do-it-yourself mindset, and the company’s development is entwined with the country’s digital trajectory, which has led to the nickname e-Estonia. Digitisation was originally undertaken to save money and cut back on bureaucracy and paper waste. But people also accepted it because it made sense, he says.

“Estonians have always been makers,” says Vares. “Estonians are not conquerors, and we are not settlers,” he says. “We build our homes, maintain our homes, and build everything necessary for our homes. Sometimes, often, it happens that we come up with something brilliant that others also need.”

With Fractory, Vares and his cofounders developed a cloud-based manufacturing platform that connects engineering companies with the manufacturing market. Companies can upload their CAD files as either 2D drawings or 3D models, find the best fit for manufacturing partners using Fractory’s algorithm, order whatever parts they need, and have them delivered. The ordering data is standardized to make sure there are no delays and quality stays efficient.

“We provide quick access and the best solution on the market for customers,” says Vares. 

Creating the Fractory platform was no picnic. Vares says that the company needed to develop the technology to automate the selection process. “Dissecting the order information and connecting it to a manufacturer is pretty complicated,” he says. In addition to manufacturing technology, the platform, for example, includes elements of fintech and logistics. “We haven’t built one company, we’ve built five companies at the same time,” he says. “It’s been a massive process.”

A direct effect

Fractory’s online marketplace is not only aimed at engineers who need custom laser-cut parts. While they can use it to compare and fulfil orders, regardless of batch size, manufacturers that have specialised laser-cutting equipment can maximize the capacity they have to better capitalize on their cutting machines, which are often very expensive to acquire and to operate. Orders can run the gamut, from large-scale production to one-off prototypes, and Fractory has engineers on staff who can troubleshoot any issues that might arise in any part of the process. 

According to Vares, Fractory’s cofounder Rein Torm, a former software developer at Skype, was interested in the project because he could design a platform with actual physical output. The designs uploaded to Fractory’s site would eventually be produced and installed, as part of a ship or train, for example, or as a component of a CNG filling station somewhere.

“For him, the world has always been digital,” says Vares. “He was intrigued that he could build something digital that directly affects the physical world.”

It did take some years to win the market over, though. Vares acknowledges that Fractory at first struggled to win over first adopters. “It was not well received, but we were stubborn, and we knew that it made sense,” he says. “Six or seven years later, we now know the revolution we are bringing to the industry is inevitable,” he adds. “It was bound to happen anyway. We were lucky to get it started before it was obvious.”

Expansion

Fractory currently has about 80 employees across multiple locations, including an office in Turku, Finland, and another in Manchester, UK, where it opened a location in 2019. It also liaises with 164 active supply partners around the world, each one of which is vetted by the firm.

Its home market is Northern Europe, where growth continues in Estonia, with a population of 1.3 million. “Estonia has been growing immensely,” says Vares. “Manufacturing is everywhere,” he says. “The amount of metal that goes around the world is not something that people think of every day, but even in a small market like Estonia, the volumes are massive.” 

As they are in Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden, where Fractory has expanded its supplier market. The UK has also proven a good market for the company, and via the UK, Fractory is also serving US customers. Indeed, about a tenth of UK orders are from US clients.

Interestingly, the last technology innovation in the metal manufacturing market might really have been email, says Vares. Three decades ago, customers would have to go to suppliers in person to place orders. Email eliminated the need to do that, but Fractory has changed the process. For users, Fractory offers a way to get the parts they need faster, so they can focus on their actual important tasks.

“At the end of the day, the customer wants the metal parts,” he says. “They want to make their product, and they want to sell whatever their product is. Procurement is a means to an end.”

Resouce: e-estonia

Highlights from Tallinn Digital Summit 2019: living with AI

September 2019

This week saw the third annual Tallinn Digital Summit with a special focus on AI for public value. The event brought together more than 200 experts from 23 countries, including top leaders from the government level as well as private sector and scientists.

Prime Minister Jüri Ratas in his opening words compared innovation to the steam engine, except that now we have arrived in a time where every day we invent a new steam engine. “AI is here, and we have to learn to use it to make our lives better,” he said, talking about the Estonian government-initiated AI strategy and how there are already a little over 20 machine learning based solutions live in the Estonian public sector. He also emphasized that in Estonia the citizen is always the owner of their own data and our digital ecosystem, that relies on distributed architecture, does not include big brother.

Utilizing AI in governments and democracy, smart cities, healthcare, as well as legal and ethical aspects were discussed in panels. The day was wrapped up with a special focus on how AI can help in achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals.

How do we co-exist with AI

A lot of the discussions revolved around defining AI and the expectations that we have for it. Ben Cerveny, from the Foundation for Public Code, said that we expect AI to act like a human, a peer or even a godlike entity. “That is a very precarious position to be in. As governments, we should not frame these solutions as something mythical. Intelligence does not mean sentience, it’s much more,” he said speaking at the AI in smart cities panel.

Dr. Ralf-Martin Soe, also speaking at the same panel, said: “AI by default is designed to follow the rules, people are designed to break or rewrite the rules. You either limit human creativity to break the rules as much as possible or keep the robots in closes environments.”

Representatives from countries shared their examples of progress in co-existing with AI so far, most notably the Norwegian Minister of Digitalisation, Nikolai Astrup talked about testing self-driving vehicles and Norway having even allocated a fjord for testing autonomous ships.

Interoperability and inclusivity

Working together as countries and communities is crucial and this was stressed across panels and keynotes. Between Estonia and Finland data exchange is already in a very good position thanks to the X-Road. Need for similar solutions has already been identified by many other countries, but not only – there is need also on municipality level. For example, Stephen Lorimer from the Greater London Authority, spoke of need for interoperability between the 33 London boroughs.

Of course, the biggest question is how we can use AI and data to build a better society for us where nobody is left behind. Stina Billinger, State Secretary to the Swedish Minister for Business, Industry and Innovation said that faster policy innovation is crucial. “Digital exclusivity needs political answers to make sure that the opportunities and benefits of AI are creating a good environment for everyone,” she said. Maria Rautavirta from the Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communications illustrated how in Finland inclusivity begins from understanding – a public online course by the University of Helsinki aims to demystify AI. So far already more than 100 000 Finns have taken the course, according to Rautavirta.

Doing good with AI

The day concluded with how to utilize AI for good and solutions that help achieve the UN SDGs and relieve humanitarian crises around the world. Benjamin Kumpf from the UK Department for International Development, stressed the importance of designing for the actual user, not designing elsewhere and importing the solution to the end users. Julien Cornebise, from ElementAI, illustrated how satellite data and computer vision can help organizations doing humanitarian work channel their efforts better.

The Summit also saw Estonian tech companies coming together in the name of environmental sustainability by announcing the Green Pledge. It’s an initiative to make business operations fully sustainable by 2030.

Resource: e-estonia

CAN AI BE A FAIR JUDGE IN COURT? ESTONIA THINKS SO

25/03/2019

GOVERNMENT USUALLY ISN’T the place to look for innovation in IT or new technologies like artificial intelligence. But Ott Velsberg might change your mind. As Estonia’s chief data officer, the 28-year-old graduate student is overseeing the tiny Baltic nation’s push to insert artificial intelligence and machine learning into services provided to its 1.3 million citizens.

“We want the government to be as lean as possible,” says the wiry, bespectacled Velsberg, an Estonian who is writing his PhD thesis at Sweden’s Umeå University on using the Internet of Things and sensor data in government services. Estonia’s government hired Velsberg last August to run a new project to introduce AI into various ministries to streamline services offered to residents.

Deploying AI is crucial, he says. “Some people worry that if we lower the number of civil employees, the quality of service will suffer. But the AI agent will help us.” About 22 percent of Estonians work for the government; that’s about average for European countries, but higher than the 18 percent rate in the US.

Siim Sikkut, Estonia’s chief information officer, began piloting several AI-based projects at agencies in 2017, before hiring Velsberg last year. Velsberg says Estonia has deployed AI or machine learning in 13 places where an algorithm has replaced government workers.

For example, inspectors no longer check on farmers who receive government subsidies to cut their hay fields each summer. Satellite images taken by the European Space Agency each week from May to October are fed into a deep-learning algorithm originally developed by the Tartu Observatory. The images are overlaid onto a map of fields where farmers receive the hay-cutting subsidies to prevent them from turning forests over time.

Recourse: wired