The real estate industry can simultaneously combat inequality and boost property values by improving broadband access, according to a new ULI report. Broadband and Real Estate: Understanding the Opportunity, from the Institute’s Curtis Infrastructure Initiative, makes clear that high-speed internet is no longer a luxury but a necessity for participating in society and the economy.

Kroger, one of the largest U.S. grocery store chains, has partnered with Drone Express to begin testing grocery delivery via autonomous drones in Centerville, Ohio.

According to the North American Ports Report by Cushman and Wakefield, U.S. ports rebounded strongly in the second half of 2020. Volumes for the full year changed only modestly—a 2 percent increase in loaded inbound twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) and a decline of 5.5 percent on loaded export units.

The pandemic has accelerated the use of contactless drones for comprehensive applications in real estate development.

SPONSORED POST:See the latest trends in CRE and learn how slow payments in the construction industry generated domino effects costing an estimated $100 billion in 2020. Rabbet, a provider of cloud-based software for managing construction finances, surveyed real estate developers, lenders, subcontractors, and general contractors and packaged the results in its two latest reports.

As is common in the infrastructure and regulatory world, economic analysis is increasingly being used in the real estate industry to provide quantifiable insights into the long-term outcomes of design and investment strategies related to owner, occupant, and community impacts. Companies are using evidence-based research to understand how changes in the workplace can have a direct impact on both employee well-being and bottom-line financials.

The global impact on human health and economic stability resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak is likely to quickly and dramatically elevate health and wellness as key factors influencing urban design and development as well as building management and operations, according to industry experts convened by ULI for a webinar on the impacts of the pandemic. The event was the first of a series of webinars being offered to explore how various aspects of the real estate industry are being affected by the virus and the industry’s response.

Panelists at the 2020 ULI Tampa Trends event said that smart parking and traffic sensors are already being incorporated into large projects, and Microsoft is funding the use of artificial intelligence at the University of South Florida’s medical school.

Members of ULI Europe’s Technology and Real Estate Product Council discuss the new council’s areas of focus, approaches to evaluating and implementing new technologies, ways to improve understanding between technology startups and the real estate industry, promising current and future technologies, and related trends.

Which emerging real estate technologies will become the must-haves, and which will be the near misses? You can take your chances on a $100 doorbell, but if you are investing millions in a property or trying to run a profitable business, you cannot afford to waste resources on fads. Those two questions—what are the unintended consequences, and which technologies have staying power—are themes running throughout this special issue of Urban Land.