AI to help develop housing solutions
Gavin Coote : Everyone agrees we're in the midst of a housing crisis, but the solutions aren't all straightforward. Someone who understands the complexity of the challenges is John Engeler, who's the CEO of Shelter NSW and Chair of National Shelter.
John Engeler : I think if there's anything we can take from this recent federal election is that housing is absolutely in the middle of what it is that needs to be looked at. We're all looking at it together. So I think the challenge now is to make sure that we're not describing different parts of the elephant.
Gavin Coote : There's hope artificial intelligence could be part of the answer. A consortium led by the University of NSW and involving academics, industry and government has developed a new facility using AI to bring together all the available data on housing and work on solutions. Professor Chris Pettit is leading the project known as the Housing Analytics Lab, which will open today in Sydney's inner south.
Chris Pettit: The lab is a digital space and a physical space where really we bring people together with tools to help a myriad of aspects of the housing crisis, whether it's understanding the housing supply pipeline or understanding which parts of our city are more unaffordable or becoming more unaffordable, understanding I guess the resilience of our cities to natural disasters and what role data and AI and technology can play.
Gavin Coote : The lab will aim to find new breakthroughs to problems like housing affordability and delays in developing new homes. Chris Pettit says AI will play a major role in helping government and industry pinpoint the current bottlenecks.
Chris Pettit: So basically you can chat to your map and ask questions like, show me my property, tell me what zoning is permissible, what is the zoning of this property and what permissible development am I allowed, what's the nearest school or train station. So enabling AI to make it easier to ask questions of our data. So we know data technology, AI is not going to solve all our challenges, but it's very exciting that we've been able to set up the housing analytics lab to look at the whole housing system because not one sector, not one department can solve this dilemma we're in. We all have to work together.
Gavin Coote : National Shelter Chair John Engeler thinks the use of AI to tackle some of the problems in the sector is a no-brainer.
John Engeler : It's a quick way of being able to take lots of information from different disciplines. So property information is different from planning information, which is different from strata information, which is different from tax. So it allows the way for all of this to be brought together, come up with some solutions. Absolutely, AI is well suited to housing at the moment.
Sabra Lane: National Shelter Chair John Engeler ending Gavin Coote's report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
39 minutes ago
- News.com.au
‘Freaking out': Perth woman risks property portfolio to launch skincare brand
A young Aussie has recently done something most homeowners would never dare to – refinancing multiple mortgages to invest everything into her skincare brand LumiLift. Tegan Brown owns two investment properties in Perth, but she's made the bold decision to pour every ounce of equity she's built up into her beauty business. 'I have two investment properties. I bought the first one about four years and the other one about two years ago,' Ms Brown told The 28-year-old bought her first property for $380,000 just before the pandemic, getting in before 'prices increased' – having likely doubled in value in the years since. She then purchased a second home for around $450,000, funding both investments entirely on her own, thanks to her work in recruitment and years of saving. 'I'm always looking at opportunities to grow wealth, and property was the first and safest option to do that at the start,' she said. Both the properties are tenanted, Ms Brown said, and were essentially paying for themselves before she made the decision to take a chance and invest in her business. Ms Brown didn't have heaps of cash sitting around, so she refinanced both mortgages – a choice she admitted was daunting when she originally made it. 'It was scary but I did have mentors that said the best thing you can do with equity is either reinvest into more property or into building your own business,' she said. 'I invested about $100,000 initially.' That $100,000 was allocated towards the brand's inventory, marketing, and content creation, and also served as a financial buffer, as she had quit her job in recruiting to make it her sole focus. Ms Brown said that when she told people she planned to pull out the equity in both her investments, the reaction wasn't positive. Some were 'freaking out', but Ms Brown didn't let the concern deter her because she believed in the skincare brand she's created – in particular, its light therapy mask. Ms Brown claimed the device helps to create clearer skin and helps women avoid having to 'spend thousands' on treatments that don't offer the same results. 'I created LumiLift because I wanted other women to experience that same transformation without spending thousands or relying on quick fixes that don't last,' she said. 'For me, skincare isn't just about appearance. It's about confidence, freedom, and ease.' Ms Brown explained that her ultimate goal is for her customers to be so happy with their skin from using her product they won't feel reliant on make-up to feel good. She's also had some moments that have made the financial risk feel worth it. For her, the most 'rewarding' thing has been seeing skincare professionals buy her products and rave about the results. Ms Brown said she is also proud she had invested in herself and backed her idea, despite the risk involved. 'The biggest challenges have been sitting in the unknown, especially because I have invested so much money,' she explained. 'Sometimes the fear of failure can get to your head. But I think through these hard periods, not giving (up) feels like a huge win.' The business owner said that given her brand is still new and growing, it isn't yet at the profitable stage, meaning she's still waiting to see if her risk will pay off. 'It is getting there. It has been a journey and it is getting closer and closer to where I want it to be,' she said. 'The main thing for me is building a community and seeing the results and I know the money will come.'
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
The AI revolution taking place in the classroom
The AI revolution is well underway in Australia's schools with powerful AI programs that can even write essays. But what does that mean for the way students learn and think and what about the future of teachers? Jason Om takes a look.
SBS Australia
an hour ago
- SBS Australia
Victorian Parliament urged to amend guardianship gag laws
Victorian Parliament urged to amend guardianship gag laws Published 13 August 2025, 9:33 am A bill introduced to Victorian Parliament is seeking to change the way people with disabilities share their stories. The bill changes a previous clause which restricts individuals under guardianship orders from speaking out without permission from a Government Tribunal. Advocates say it left people silenced and disempowered.
