Time to innovate

A domestic government desperate for growth. A global leader in a hurry to deliver on his own agenda, seemingly irrespective of cost. And an economic climate that’s harder to predict that ever.

Into this heady mix throw megatrends like climate change, technological disruption from AI and geopolitical turbulence. Calling next week, let alone the next decade, requires a degree of bravery.

But some forces are predictable – which should be of comfort to an industry not always at the bleeding edge of disruption.

Modern methods of construction have not enjoyed widespread adoption, but maybe learnings have come from the failures of modular and, let’s be clear, some real successes – have you seen Tide’s approach to volumetric?

The benefits of AI are already being realised by lawyers, by architects and by any number of back-office functions. How can they be taken more into the mainstream, and the real risks minimised.

And it’s no wonder that investors are so interested in the energy transition. There’s money to be made beyond them there drills.

Innovation might come in addressing demographic change – from migration to an ageing population. It might come in moving AI from the margins to the mainstream. And it might come from going back to the future – Boom Supersonic’s “Son of Concorde” a headline example. (Oh, and EG is dead, long live Estates Gazette.)

So far, so disruptive. Now, where might innovation come from?

Given Trump’s elevation of tech bros to the heart of government, it will come from Silicon Valley for sure. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg threw down the gauntlet last month when he said Apple hadn’t “really invented anything great in a while”. Expect more of that sort of posturing; it may not be particularly edifying, but perhaps it will have a positive, goading effect. (That said, we shouldn’t forget that the new digital city being built by Google’s Sidewalk Labs in Toronto failed five years ago.)

Innovation will also come from within the sector – and at both ends of the scale rail.

We’ll learn a lot – bad and good – from the much-discussed Saudi gigaprojects, of course. At a more human scale, might we one day see robotically printed homes utilising plastic waste? Well, we already are. Ask Azure.

Whether you are an architect or a developer, in the day-to-day business of running a business it’s easy to let innovation slide. Other issues can seem more urgent and important. But innovation needs to be someone’s job in every business. And examples need to be shared for innovation to thrive.

So gathering matters.

MIPIM’s focus on accelerating the transformation of the built world ensures it offers that opportunity next month. If you are there – or if you aren’t – ING can help too. We’re working with CRETech head of content Emily Wright on a series of innovation breakfasts, focusing on some of the smart thinking taking place across the sector. Sign up here.

We can’t control disruption, but each of us can commit to fostering innovation. We must.