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Zillow Chief Industry Development Officer Errol Samuelson on Tuesday compared artificial intelligence to the invention of smartphones, social media and even older and more transformative technology.
“I think we are on the verge of a revolution that is like the invention of the steam engine,” Samuelson said, adding a moment later that “this is a once in a 200 years kind of thing.”
Samuelson made the comments while on stage during CEO Connect, a part of Inman Connect Las Vegas, which is happening this week. And his point was that the current moment is one that will fundamentally change the entire world — including the world of homebuying and selling.
“It’s happening whether we want it to or not,” Samuelson added.
Samuelson went on to mention how Zillow is deploying AI. Among other highlights, Samuelson said Zillow has built a ChatGPT-powered chatbot that can surface listings based on consumers’ conversational prompts. It “took us a few weeks” to build the tool, Samuelson said.
He also discussed how Zillow’s programmers currently have two computer screens on their desks. One shows their work while the other displays AI-powered suggestions and programming assistance. And his point with these anecdotes is that AI is already becoming an essential tool for companies in the real estate space.
Though Samuelson’s session didn’t dive deep into details on how AI might influence various other aspects of the real estate industry — brokerages, for example, or day-to-day agent practices — he did argue that industry leaders have to stay vigilant; AI is so new right now that the leading players may not ultimately end up on top. Moreover, smaller players still have a chance to build their own platforms with relatively small investments.
“Every day you need to be worried and scared,” Samuelson cautioned, lest you be replaced.
Errol Samuelson at Inman Connect Las Vegas Tuesday | Image by AJ Canaria Creative Services
Aside from AI, Samuelson weighed in on the pace of change in real estate generally. He said that overall, the housing industry’s evolution has been “incremental rather than big bang.” Those incremental changes include the rise of teams, which according to Samuelson are “driving the business today,” and the emergence of new business models, such as the virtual models of companies like eXp Realty.
He also pointed out that decades ago listing photos tended to be lower quality, and there were no 3D tours — meaning today it’s easier for consumers to visualize the homes they might consider buying.
Still, Samuelson sounded somewhat resigned when speaking about changes in real estate, acknowledging that while new ideas have shaken up the agent experience, they haven’t fundamentally reimagined the way consumers buy and sell houses.
“I think it’s radical for the agent community; but for the consumer, I’m not sure it’s changed that much,” he sighed. “Ten years ago I would have thought we would have made more progress now.”
Nevertheless, Samuelson said Zillow is trying to eliminate friction points. He pointed to his company’s acquisition of ShowingTime, which has now led Zillow to offer a real-time home-showing experience. Samuelson compared the offering to OpenTable, the platform that lets people easily book restaurant reservations.
“You still need an agent to show it to you,” Samuelson said of listings, “but that’s one more piece of friction that’s taken out of the equation.”
Samuelson also pointed to Zillow’s partnership with Opendoor, which puts the iBuyer’s cash offers on the portal’s website. He added that iBuying has proven to be a smaller niche than some initially suspected — Zillow announced it was bowing out of the sector in 2021 — but the portal giant still believes “there’s a desire in a niche for that product so we think it’s important to offer it.”
Though Samuelson envisions plenty of change ahead for the real estate industry, he also noted Tuesday that more people are using agents today than they were before the coronavirus pandemic. And he said the takeaway is that consumers are willing to pay for agents’ expertise.
“This notion of consumers are focused first and foremost on price,” he said, “I don’t think it’s right.”
