Is This the End of Renting?
The new AI technology that undercuts landlords
“The future of renting goes like this:”, says 25-year-old CEO of tech startup I’m Home, “We’ll inhabit our own minds.”
I’m Home, whose tagline is “Taking the real out of real estate”, was created in 2017. Its CEO, U. (not anonymous — that’s his actual name), is also its only employee. U. invites me to New York City for the interview. His large office is entirely white and just contains two bean bags and a monstera plant. A quote is printed on the wall in Helvetica typeface:“Perspective Is Everything.”
“I’m Home combines and utilises emerging artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR) technologies to simulate the experience of renting your own home,” U. tells me.
“As opposed to the traditional model of renting, in which tenants pay to rent property from a landlord, I’m Home lets you live inside your own mind. There, you go about all your everyday activities as normal — eating, sleeping, defecating — in your 100% perfect home and location.”
“I’m Home is free to consumers. Instead of paying rent, you are the landlord of the data you cultivate by carrying out your everyday activities. I’m Home lets you swap your data for rent-free accommodation. The business model relies on companies subscribing to your data, but you don’t need to worry about that.”
“I was so sick of landlords who just sit around accumulating wealth for just owning property,” U. continues. “I realised that, with a change in perspective, I could easily disrupt the rental sector by cutting out the middle-man, which in this case isn’t a man but is the labour that real, physical space does by existing.”
I’m Home is expected to be ready for launch in 2020.
