The Week In News, But Shorter
April 20 – 26, 2026

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

We’ve spoken about the rising interest in digital property rights in these newsletters recently, and this week we got to share our thoughts with outlet NAREIT as well. The article does a great job laying out some of the history in the space and NextRivet co‑founder David Blumenfeld weighed in on what this all means for landlords and tenants. The most immediate impact will be to lease language, including clauses to block digital abuses (for example, a tenant overlaying a competitor’s storefront), noting that previous projects, like when Apple and Google mapped mall interiors, foreshadowed some of today’s negotiations. David also points out that we’re in a bit of a “Wild West” when it comes to digital property rights, but we want to help guide you along the way – keep reading these newsletters and you’ll be ahead of the game.

Also this week, a big box retailer takes a note from our five (!!) year old POV, drones are back in the headlines (though we still have yet to see or use one ourselves), and more discussion on office space in major metros. Keep up with us over on LinkedIn.

Digital Meets Physical

Ulta Partners With Google Gemini To Power Agentic AI For Beauty Shoppers [Forbes] Ulta Beauty isn’t sitting idly by waiting for external AI agents to make beauty decisions for customers. It is getting ahead of the curve in partnership with Google to embed Gemini directly into its Ulta.com website and Ulta Beauty app, as well as extend its product catalog across Google search, shopping and its Gemini AI-driven discovery platform.

Zipline expands Texas drone delivery to Walmart, Popeye’s, and more [Chain Store Age] An autonomous drone technology provider is growing a food delivery service it launched in Rowlett, Texas in August 2025. Zipline, an American robotics company that designs, manufactures and operates what it says is the world’s largest autonomous delivery system, has widened the number of restaurant and prepared food brands available for delivery by its all-electric drone service in Texas.

Yelp’s AI chatbot can now make your dinner reservation [Engadget] Yelp Assistant can handle natural language queries for finding a specific local business. It can also be used for additional actions, such as making a restaurant reservation or ordering takeout.

Meet the Retailers Succeeding by Ignoring the Internet [Business of Fashion] You don’t need Chanel’s brand recognition to survive without an online store. From Brooklyn to Berlin, a growing number of independent store owners are saying no to e-commerce, betting a strong in-store experience can draw customers.

Shay Mitchell, Quavo and Aryna Sabalenka Invest in OneOff [WWD] Artificial intelligence-driven fashion discovery platform OneOff revealed a new round of celebrity investors. The platform currently has a slew of verified talent profiles for celebrities.

PropTalk

Digital Property Rights Emerging as Integral Part of Broader Asset Ownership [Nareit] Rapid advances in virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence are fueling a digital marketing disruption, with iconic real-world shopping malls, office buildings, stadiums, and other commercial real estate serving as preferred backdrops for these emerging technologies. Tenants will want lease language that prohibits digital abuses by competitors, says David Blumenfeld, co-founder of NextRivet.

Fifth Avenue Association president on the iconic street’s billion-dollar transformation [RetailBrew] Experiential stores, billion-dollar investments, and a sweeping boulevard redesign are reshaping New York’s most famous shopping street.

Lululemon launches e-commerce in Mexico, expands brick-and-mortar presence [RetailDive] Lululemon has launched an e-commerce site for shoppers in Mexico and plans to open eight new stores in the country in fiscal year 2026.

Walmart challenges Amazon on same-day delivery by using stores as warehouses [Financial Times] Walmart is opening a new lane in its race with Amazon for speedy ecommerce delivery, carving out back rooms of stores to hold merchandise for sellers on its digital marketplace. Walmart is now testing the use of shelves in the back rooms of stores as staging areas for delivering third-party merchandise in an effort to deliver them on the same day to customers.

Wayfair to open large-format store at Galleria Fort Lauderdale [Chain Store Age] Wayfair is expanding its brick-and-mortar plans to the Sunshine State. The online home furnishings giant will open its first large-format store in Florida at Galleria Fort Lauderdale.

San Francisco Leads the Office Sublease Comeback [Propmodo] San Francisco’s office market is showing a notable shift as sublease space is being absorbed faster than in any other major U.S. city. In the first quarter, sublease inventory dropped by 2.2 million square feet YoY, outpacing declines in Manhattan and Dallas.