The Week In News, But Shorter
February 16 – 22, 2026

A Weekly PropTech Newsletter bringing you industry updates from across the real estate spectrum

Data fragmentation has been a persistent problem in real estate and beyond, especially as tech stacks have multiplied and data has become more central to operations. AI is pushing that challenge back to the surface. A Propmodo article this week puts CRE’s unique constraints in focus: not only is data often inconsistent or poorly defined across tools, but some “competitive” data protection practices can actually limit the quality and usefulness of AI outputs. Even if broad data-sharing still feels like a stretch, getting your data organized, with clear definitions and taxonomies, should move to the top of the list. It’s the foundation for benchmarking, better analytics, and whatever AI capability you want to deploy next.

One of our LinkedIn posts from this week features advice from David Blumenfeld on CRE Insights in 60 with Ryan Elazari that is relevant to this topic. Did you see it? Also this week, an interesting peek at the unique way luxury shoppers use AI, and what brands are doing to “woo” AI – aside from providing it with ad dollars!

Digital Meets Physical

Chatbots Are the New Influencers Brands Must Woo [The New York Times] The rise of chatbot marketing is happening as A.I. tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini hit mass adoption. OpenAI has said that 800 million people use ChatGPT weekly, while Google says its Gemini chatbot has more than 750 million monthly users.

The Knot joins OpenAI’s ChatGPT ad test as brands rethink AI visibility [Glossy] As OpenAI tests ads in ChatGPT, companies like The Knot are experimenting with conversational placements and AI-native discovery. This month, OpenAI officially entered the advertising business. “Today, we’re beginning to test ads in ChatGPT in the U.S.”

Independent c-store group to deploy AI at 5,200 locations [C-Store Dive] InStore.ai’s AI-powered voice insights will be available to all Strategic Alliance for Affiliated Store Owners of America members .

Here’s how luxury shoppers are using generative AI [Chain Store Age] Consumers shopping for luxury products show some specific behavioral patterns regarding a popular next-gen artificial intelligence model. During the 2025 Black Friday to Cyber Monday period, search activity on the Algolia AI platform dropped 49% year over year.

FedEx launches AI tools to answer customers’ last-mile questions [SupplyChainDive] FedEx introduced a pair of AI-powered tracking and returns tools designed to offer shoppers more visibility into their orders and improve last-mile capabilities for shippers.

Top Tech Tools: AI’s expanding role in successful store expansion [Chain Store Age] Four companies using AI to make life easier for commercial real estate teams in a challenging macroeconomic environment.

PropTalk

AI Is Forcing Real Estate to Confront Its Data Fragmentation [Propmodo] Artificial intelligence runs on data, but not just volume. It needs structured, well defined, and consistently labeled data to train models effectively. In industries like finance and e commerce, years of standardization and digitization have created fertile ground for machine learning. Real estate is different.

AI adoption in commercial real estate still in early stages, expert says [The Globe and Mail] While uptake has been gradual, the number of Canadian property technology (proptech) startups has grown exponentially, reaching more than 590 in 2025 ⁠– from about 530 the year before. The vast majority offer AI software and machine learning products, with many focused on updating real estate management procedures, according to a recent report from Proptech Collective, a national industry association.

Alexandria Mall is evolving into ‘experiential mall’ [KALB] Big changes are coming to the Alexandria Mall, according to Alexandria Mayor Jacques M. Roy, who said the property is set to evolve into what he calls an “experiential mall.” Roy said the city and mall leadership agree the traditional retail-only model is no longer enough to stay competitive. Plans call for expanding beyond shopping to include recreation, dining, entertainment, sports, health care and spa services.

CoStar: U.S. retail vacancy expected to rise ‘minimally’ in first half of 2026 [Chain Store Age] Though receding, store closures are expected to increase in the first half of 2026 as the bifurcated retail sales environment pushes certain tenants to trim locations. That’s according to the new forecast from commercial real estate data firm CoStar, which said that U.S. retail vacancy is expected to rise minimally in the first half of 2026 before falling slightly during the latter half of the year and into 2027.

As 2026 kicks off, these retailers are vulnerable to bankruptcy [RetailDive] As for retailers currently at risk, they’re facing many of the same problems the industry grappled with last year: a financially stretched consumer, an ever-shifting tariff environment and a tough labor market. Only it’s now been almost a full year of tariff-induced chaos and shoppers have been pressured for several consecutive years.

Report: Amazon plans second big store in Chicago area [Chain Store Age] Amazon continues to test new concepts in brick and mortar. The company has proposed a mega-store in the Chicago suburb of Oak Brook, reported the Chicago Tribune. The development includes a 225,000-sq.-ft., Amazon store and a two-level, 150,000-sq.-ft. Ashley Furniture store, the report said. The project needs final approval from Oak Brook approvals.