How this technology will transform commercial real estate in 2023

The opinions expressed by entrepreneurs contributors are their own.

3D digital twins have begun to enter the real estate market and vocabulary, slowly shifting from technical tools used in business processes to a more people-oriented role. They become valuable business tools that represent a commitment to innovation, adaptability and sustainability.

In 2023 and beyond, I expect to see them evolve in their impact and market support. The commercial real estate segments — such as office or retail — have faced great challenges over the past 2 years. Now they are faced with new expectations from their customers, and 3D digital twins can play a vital role in meeting them. That's why I expect these tools to evolve more and more to become a standard in real estate.

After three years of focusing on digital replicas and their potential worldwide, here are the main directions I see commercial 3D digital twins developing in the next year:

Related: Why Leaders Need to Take Note of 'Digital Twins'

More resources for research and development

Growth in the digital twin industry means increased competitiveness among digital twin vendors to deliver the best technologies to their customers. The resources involved in research and development will increase in order to develop and integrate new technologies based on AI, virtual reality and augmented reality, to optimize and automate processes and to reduce costs.< /p>

Renders still have better graphics than most 3D tours, so this could easily be a starting point for digital twins. The metaverses we currently have face the same challenge and as the two (real estate and digital universes) come together, better graphics and immersive gamification features will be a must. Real estate must be prepared for the future and for a generation of customers (Gen Z, millennials and even Gen Alpha) for whom mastering the digital space comes naturally.

We will see more digital twins in shopping areas

While not so long ago digital twins were complex structures representing all the technicalities necessary for the construction process, we are moving towards an era where they are refined for the public. Heavy data replicas that required professional knowledge get a complementary partner: web-based 3D twins, easy to access and understandable by everyone.

These beautiful branded and soon to be gamified replicas will play an important role not only in the digital enhancement of a space in order to reduce research and negotiation times but also in the divestment process, facilitating the sale of a building. Additionally, given the growing number of refurbished offices (54% of new projects in 2021 in London were office refurbishments), digital twins can also be very useful here, showcasing and pre-letting future space. /p>

Related: Into the Metaverse: How Digital Twins Can Change the Business Landscape

We are moving towards digital universes

The enterprise metaverse as a concept is no longer something new. Real estate companies could soon have their entire portfolio digitally replicated on a virtual web platform. This would particularly favor large developers or those with mixed asset classes (offices, residential, retail, logistics, etc.).

These universes would present the spaces and their specificities in the single window of a company, from a state-of-the-art 3D digital twin.

A real estate universe based on a digital twin would make sense not only for existing assets, but also for those in the process of being planned or built. Think of new cities built from scratch, like The Line or the