Drees & Sommer, a global consulting company providing a single source of consultation and implementation services for the real estate, industry and infrastructure, has unveiled key findings from recent regional market research1 in Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic. The study examines major digitalization trends, focusing on AI usage, and the overall perception of digitalization in the real estate and construction industries. In Hungary, just around 22% of workers in real estate use AI, with 23% of them using it on a daily basis and 46% on a weekly basis. Additionally, 60% of people working in real estate and construction across all three markets expressed a strong desire to learn how to use AI in their workplace, indicating a high motivation to develop digital skills within this sector.
“Compared to the broader CEE region, Hungarian workers in the real estate sector are average AI users, with a lower frequency of AI usage in their work. However, they show a high motivation to learn and advance in this area. According to our research, the majority of real estate workers have had positive experiences with AI, though around 15% do not trust it. This underscores the importance of data verification in our market,” commented Ákos Koloszár, Managing Director of Drees & Sommer for Hungary.
Barriers to AI adoption: insufficient overview of available tools, lack of training, and a lack of trust
In total, 75% of Hungarian workers reported not using AI for their work, leaving only around a fifth actively using AI, mostly on a weekly basis (46%), and with 23% using it daily. The most active users are those under 30 years old (46%) and senior and top management. In comparison, Poland (30%) and the Czech Republic (27%) have a higher percentage of AI users in the real estate sector, with Poland having the highest share of daily users (38%) and the Czech Republic only 15%.
Hungarian workers cited the main barriers to AI adoption as an insufficient overview of the available tools and solutions suitable for their work and company (35%), followed by inadequate training provided by the company (16%), and lack of trust (15%). Additionally, nearly 10% reported not having enough time. In Poland, distrust in AI is slightly higher (17%). On the positive side, only 5% of workers across all three countries stated they do not understand AI, and only 4% reported poor experiences with it.
Current and future AI applications: from data collection to enhanced automation, greater energy efficiency, and more effective tender management
Hungarian real estate workers primarily use AI for data collection (52%), the highest percentage among the three countries. Other significant uses include document management and reporting (38%), and planning (22%). Additional applications are process automation (16%), improving analysis of large amount of data (14%), increasing competitiveness and developing new products and services (12%), energy efficiency (9%), and intelligent space design (7%). In Poland, AI is most commonly used for reporting (35%) and planning (32%), as well as site analysis (23%). The Czech Republic is most active in data collection (37%) and process automation (29%).
Looking ahead, Hungarian workers, given the right support, wish to use AI mainly for improved data collection (41%), document management and reporting (35%), process automation (33%), and improving the analysis of large amounts of data (26%). They also see potential in energy efficiency (13%), tender management (12%), and accounting (10%).
The Drees & Sommer Innovation Center has successfully established an AI strategy with several different AI taskforces and AI stakeholders to assist companies worldwide, including those in the CEE region, with AI applications. This process begins with an AI Readiness Assessment to evaluate the AI maturity level of a company, and aims to accelerate their future development. “Internally, we run regular companywide Prompting Trainings, AI Learning Nuggets, AI Ideathons or our latest development is Dreso.AI – a platform that integrates different AI agents and AI assistants,” explained Hanna Huber, Leader of Innovation Management at Drees & Sommer.
Hungarian workers are not well informed about AI promotion activities within their company
Over one-third of Hungarian real estate workers are not well informed about their company’s AI activities, and 10% stated that their company does not promote AI at all. The most common method of promoting AI innovation in Hungarian companies is through training (15%), followed by establishing incentive systems for innovative ideas and projects (13%), and setting up internal innovation labs and research departments (8%). Conversely, cooperation with external research institutions and start-ups is less developed (5%). In Poland, companies more frequently participate in industry-specific events (14%) and cooperate with start-ups (11%). In the Czech Republic, workers receive slightly less training support (11%) compared to Hungary.
Besides AI, Hungarians frequently use cloud computing, document management software, project management software, and Internet of Things
A total of 43% of respondents across all three markets use other digital tools alongside AI. In Hungary, the most-used digital tools after AI are cloud computing (28%), document management software (19%), and project management software and Internet of Things (10%). In Poland the most popular after AI is document management software (16%), while in the Czech Republic Internet of Things (9%).
“With the rise of AI, it is becoming even more apparent that the magic happens at the intersection between different technologies. But it’s not only about the convergence of the technologies but also the enhancement in development speed – each technology fuels the others' growth,” added Hanna Huber.
Hungarians view the level of digitalization in real estate and construction positively
Almost 50% Hungarian workers perceive the level of digitalization in the real estate and construction as positive, 10% as very good and 36% as good. Over 25% evaluated the level as sufficient. On the other side, 22% stated it is poor and 3% as critical. Poland is the most positive country from all three markets, with 57% of real estate workers indicating the level of digitalization is good or very good, and the Czech Republic is on the contrary the most critical with 32 % viewing it as poor or critical.
Digitalization: the biggest challenge is the lack of digital skills among employees, the greatest opportunity lies in overall increased efficiency
The primary challenges across all three markets include a lack of digital skills among employees (44%), insufficient investment in digital tools, systems, and processes (35%), lack of awareness of the benefits and opportunities of digitalization (34%), data security and protection concerns (30%), and lack of leadership from company management to promote digitalization (21%).
In Hungary, the biggest opportunities provided by the digitalization are as seen increased efficiency and reduced operational costs (50%), process optimization (40%), greater service quality and increased transparency through digital documents (both 38%), and enhanced employer attractiveness for young professionals as well as generating new business models (both 17%). In the Czech Republic and Poland, future opportunities are viewed similarly, while Poland emphasizes greater service quality and the Czech Republic focuses on process optimization.
Download the full report: Digital Transformation in the Construction and Real Estate Industry: A Central European Perspective
1) The market research was conducted by agency STEM/MARK in August and September 2024 in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary. The representative sample included 313 respondents from each market (939 in total) actively working in the real estate and construction sector across various positions and job statuses, reflecting the percentage representation of these workers in the labor market.