Beyond Normal
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Beyond Normal
Architectural Storytelling: Enhancing Real Estate with Nate Robert Eze
In this episode of the Beyond Normal Podcast, we sit down with Nate Robert-Eze, founder of Vision, to explore how he’s blending architecture, storytelling, and emerging technology to revolutionize the real estate space. From building foam models in college to launching immersive 3D property experiences powered by AI, Nate’s journey is one of vision, grit, and growth.
Tune in as we discuss the art of architectural storytelling, the rise of AI-powered property tours, and how founders like Nate are shaping smart cities and smarter customer experiences. Whether you’re in real estate, design, or tech, this conversation will inspire you to think bigger and build bolder.
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🔗 Learn more about Nate’s work at: https://www.nateroberteze.com
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Welcome, welcome to another great episode of The Beyond Normal Podcast. I am your host, Kenny Groom. We have a very special guest today, co. The company, that they are building, is called Vision. It is in, the real estate realm, like it does, they're doing some amazing things, but, the reason why I wanted to have them on as a guest today, many times when it comes to, real estate. And that and that topic, of discussion. People just think you have to like to be in that business. You just have to either build the homes. Or you have to own the property. And there's so many different business types, and as you all know, I am on a big, B2B, kick, at this point in our beyond, normal journey. And so, I, I definitely appreciate our, our guests, Nate, Robert-Eze, for coming on and, and just, giving us a little bit of a background into, what he's building in this incredible company. Called vision. So without further ado, Nate, how's it going?
Nate:Man, it's going well. Thanks for having me, man.
Kenny:Appreciate you coming on, for an episode and just wanting to share your story with our guests, our listeners. many of our, our listeners have already started along the path of, being a founder, but others haven't. And so hearing perspectives from people like yourself. Who have already taken that leap of faith and and are gambling on themselves definitely allows'em to be a little bit more informed on their entrepreneur journey. so without further ado, tell our listeners a little bit about what you were doing prior to even taking that gamble on yourself. with vision.
Nate:Well, I found entrepreneurship by way of architecture. I had always been a pretty creative kid. I always tell people I, grew up sort of drawing in church. I would get in trouble for drawing on the offering envelopes in church. I. And I just loved getting ideas out. Just, you know, always loved getting ideas out and, so I, I found architecture to be, you know, with the drawing skills and all those things, the creativeness and just the visionary thoughts, I found architecture to be the best outlet for that to, you know, to enter a career. And so when I went to college, I realized that that was, that was very short-lived. So
Kenny:I
Nate:ended up, pivoting to urban planning. Which I did because I still wanted to stay in the built environment realm like, you know, architecture s'cause you learn about architecture and, you know, when you're studying urban planning. But I wanted to sort of expand the reach and learn more about the built environment in general.
Kenny:whether,
Nate:whether it be policy, real estate, landscape architecture, or you know, architecture, which is kind of like what makes up what we see as urban planning. And so got into that and graduated with that degree. And then I got a master's in Urban Design and that's where this real estate thing really started to, to appeal to me. I started really, really finding an appreciation for real estate because I realized where the power actually sort of like. Where, where the power is held like by real estate developers who actually think of the buildings. They hire an architect, and then the architect actually design, and that's how it comes to life. And so that's what I was more intrigued by was like, okay, I. Who is the person behind? Who is the thought, who is the mind behind this? Who is the creative behind this? and so I started digging deeper fun. enough, I ended up going back to architecture, working for a few architecture firms, but there was always this draw, right? There was always this draw to the creative. There was always this draw to technology. And so, I worked for two architecture firms who both took me under their wing and I think because they were, one of them was pretty established, but you know, they had pretty archaic ways of doing business, like, especially when it comes to business development and, you know, proposal building and marketing. And so I was able to bring some of the young flare that I had coming outta school and help them to scale. And so I would see. Directly how that was beneficial for that company. so when I, once I left that company and went to the next one, that one was a startup. So I was able to take some of the skills that I learned at the, at the other job and bring them and, and translate them directly to my new role. And, you know, that's when things really took off. so the, I guess the entrepreneurship spirit sort of started brewing. Again, you know, at around that time,'cause I saw how direct inputs and ideas sort of turned into business results. And in 2020 I started, you know, my company and I, I started my company under render vision and that then was rebranded into vision and here we are.
Kenny:I love it. I, I, I, I appreciate you taking us on that journey with you. it's really interesting to, to hear that, you had that calling. Towards architecture at a young age. I'm, I'm only imagining how much, what the repercussions were for, drawing in church. they probably weren't very good, repercussions at all. They're probably very severe.
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:but you getting at that outright in terms of your creative outlet and that leading you down the path where you actually went away from. Architecture for a little bit, but now here you are still, itching. What is it? Itching, scratching that itch. Right? And that, that, that's really cool to hear. Like that's a full circle, story. You, you, you sitting there telling us that. I'm curious. When I think of architects, I think of like this really cool. Balance of like, you gotta know some of the technical, you gotta have a technical skillset in terms of the math and some of the STEM skills. But then there's also this creative element. Everybody I've known who's in this space is a really, interesting thinker, if I can say it that way. So I'm curious for you like. Has, has it been a bal ha ha. Does it feel like that sort of balance, I guess, being in this space now where you get to leverage both sides of the, the creative side and then the, the much more technical kind of stem focus, because there aren't many career paths now where you find a balance like that.
Nate:Yeah. Dude, that's a really good question. So, one thing that I realized in architecture school was that I guess the technicality that I was drawn to was in technology, and that's why I pivoted because we didn't have that. It was more so sort of creative side and then the technical side from a math, you know, standpoint. And I don't know, something just would tell me back then that things are gonna change very fast. when I get outta school just seeing where technology was going,'cause I would always love technology, but again, there was really no way for me to scratch that itch. then, because, you know, we were almost until our third year, we were banned to using software. and so like literally we were not allowed to use software to create our designs. And, you know, for, for, I, I think the intention was, was good, right? Because they wanted people to really be creative and get ideas out of their mind without using tech, you know, technology. you know, it taught me a lot, but now it's like. That's how we, that's like how we ever get any idea out is really by interacting with this with some type of machine. and so
Kenny:I
Nate:would
Kenny:say
Nate:technology and entrepreneurship has given me another outlet to be creative because as you mentioned earlier, like there is that balance, right? I, I made a LinkedIn post literary about this like two days ago. I. About how a lot of visionaries, start off in architecture because they have that visionary mind.
Kenny:Um. And,
Nate:and visionaries typically are led to entrepreneurship because they can see things that people, you know, other people don't see in, in, in playing sight. And so the ability to be creative within a business like assembling a team, like that's creativity, right? Like assembling systems to make. You know, a lead generation flow lead to sales or lead to, you know, book deployments. And that lead to sales is creativity. Like you sit down and you, you think about how this is gonna work creatively for your business and you build it or you get someone to build it. And so, in that way, I think entrepreneurship has allowed me to sort of be creative in, in ways that, like I was looking for that creativity in architecture. And that's where sort of like, that's why I was drawn that way. It led me to the built environment, which I absolutely fell in love with. Like, okay, from a visionary standpoint, a building could not be there two years, you know, prior to. And it's like a high rise could sort of pop up, you know, kind of out of nowhere. And it could be this creative thing that people interact with that's basically alive in a sense. And so that was just so, intriguing to
Kenny:me.
Nate:And so, like I said, I mean, again, I found a way to sort of bring all those worlds together in, you know, working in VR and, and entrepreneurship and AI and things of that nature.
Kenny:That's super dope. Like. As you were just explaining that, and you were saying the programs that you were going through before, a big requirement of those programs was no software. That almost feels like, well, I could, I gotta imagine like a kid coming up now hearing that would be like, what do you mean you can't use any software and like, would it. So what were you building in these moments? Is it like I, my mind went to like, all right, all right, here's some popsicle sticks.
Nate:Literally
Kenny:build something. Was it like that?
Nate:we literally had, we, we withdraw. would take boxes, we would take what we called, foam core. So it was basically like, you know, the equivalent to like miniature like, yeah, like, like miniature drywall or something like that with like foam in the middle, but two, you know, sides of like paper, hard paper and cut it up, you know, and literally make architectural forms out of it. And again, like IS it, it, it was, it was good for what it, the intention was good. Like, they wanted you to think outside of the box and like do things that you've never done before, but. I think nowadays, like you mentioned, like, you know, people are looking at that, like world is moving so fast. Like by the thing you know, you'll be able to literally look at a screen, think of something and it'll pop up. Like, you know, while people are making cardboard boxes. So we, I think we gotta like, we gotta catch up.
Kenny:Yeah, I think, I think the big platforms. Or, me and my family and my friends, we debate this all the time, but do you have moments now where you're talking about something with your friends or a loved one and then you go to your phone and that thing is on the phone?
Nate:Yes.
Kenny:But to your point, like we kind of are already at this point where the big platforms can kind of already start to predict or see some of those trends that you're seeing. And so if we're at that point. Like it's going to be hard for the generation that didn't know or didn't have to go through, Hey, here's some popsicle sticks. Be creative
Nate:Right,
Kenny:go to that place.
Nate:right.
Kenny:Right. And I think, I feel like it gives you an advantage going through that. I think the debate is definitely still out if, previous learning methods. Are going to Trump the current ones with all the technology and stuff. How, like, do you have any thoughts about that? Like in terms of how learning is changing and like you said, kids are not having to do the same things that you went through in order to get, get into architecture for example.
Nate:Well, I, I think, you know, a lot of time, creativity is, creativity is limited to the tools you have in your, in your toolbox. And you could have tools in your toolbox. But, I.
Kenny:they're
Nate:there literally, but you don't, you know, you don't know how to use them. so as it pertains to architecture, just, you know how the educational system is changing. I hoped, you know, I went to college, you know, guess six years ago, something like that. Now I hope things have changed dramatically. I don't think they have. Not dramatically. Um, but I think, I personally think it hurts. Innovation for our generation, like our generations are, are supposed to be the ones creating the next technology for the next generation as it pertains to. Right, because at the time our tool set was so limited, like, you know, we were able to play around with these tools after school. Right. For me it was an extreme'cause I was still using it. Like I didn't care bro. I was still using it, you know? not too crazy, but like, you know, when I got to my junior, senior year. absolutely. I was using SketchUp. I was learning Revit.'cause I would look at these job listings online and I would realize that they wanted two years of, of Revit experience, which is a architectural program by the way. and so
Kenny:it
Nate:just didn't make sense to me that we weren't learning this in school. It was just like, so I did it on my own. I took an independent study, like I did all types of stuff to just try to get ahead myself. but yeah, it, it was a thing that I was very frustrated with at the time.'cause, know, I just knew where I had an idea, I guess I would say. I didn't know, but like I had a good idea where things were going. But yeah, I think it kind of cripples us the fact that, we're not encouraged to start exploring these tools at our disposal and other sectors in, in, in often cases are. and that I believe is the, is the. One of the number one pieces of
Kenny:stagnation
Nate:when it comes to, revolutionizing architecture and just the field of the built environment in general.
Kenny:Interesting man. I, I'm learning, just sitting here listening to you. it, I don't know what the answer is, but I feel like conversations like this. It makes me, it, it makes me feel a little bit better knowing that there's people out there that think like you, that are doing some of the things that you're doing, because I think the, the, the, the next generation will definitely have to learn from somebody. they, they'll have the robots to learn from for sure,
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:but I think they'll definitely be looking for. in terms of the inputs to the robots, Hey, I want to build like so and so. I want to build like Nate, right? I want to, I see what Nate's doing, like how can I do something like that? And like almost reverse engineering stuff. And so I think that's what the next generation has to kind of, kind of get a grasp of, because. We had, we had blueprints, we had some form of a blueprint, right, that we could go to and we could kind of reverse engineer, but we would go through that process of reverse engineering it ourself. And by the, by the time you get to the end, like you, you, you gain some proficiency
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:now there is no real need to, to be proficient. If you can go to a robot and they can give you instructions on the fly. So that, that we're not gonna go down that rabbit hole, right? Like, let's pivot a little bit. We've talked enough about the robots. Let's talk a little bit about, when I think of architecture, I think of community, right? I think of you're building something for a group of people to get some value from. That could be, your building, you know, now I'm in Charlotte. We're in that in the North Carolina region, right? And so they're building houses everywhere. When you build houses, you gotta build restaurants, you gotta build entertainment. And so there's this community that is a really big focus right now. Let's talk about the community that, like what, what does your tribe look like in this, in this moment as you build out, what you want, the capabilities for vision. Like who is in your tribe? And why do you have them there in this moment?
Nate:so I, I think first of all, start
Kenny:personally,
Nate:other founders who are building really cool things. I think we all really understand that where AI is going and where technology is headed. And, being able to move fast and learn the tools as fast as possible is, is key. from a community standpoint, from, you know, who I spend a lot of my time with are people who are eagerly trying to find those tools and share those tools, with each other and sort of learn together, and, and share what's working for us, et cetera. So that's, I would say, like my personal tribe and my personal sort of community. Um. Is, is people with that mindset. I also run a school community actually. it's basically a community of 3D artists, students as well as people who are trying, have started their own 3D uh. Architectural visualization companies or just 3D studios in general that would like to learn how to scale their companies. so I created it, would say about a year ago. We have about a hundred members on school.com. And so if you wanna, if that's something you've been interested in, if you're watching or listening to this, then I would definitely suggest be a part of that.'cause we talk about. Tools as well. You know, I give a lot of free game on there of like how I started and grew the company and how I was able to, market and get the first customer, get the first big job, you know, hire people. And I talk about where things are going as well in that community. also entrepreneurs, I would say. And that kind of ties into the first point I made, you know, just other people from a mindset standpoint that are. You know,'cause this is not a. Easy road. I would say it's not an easy road as well. Like was just having a conversation with one of my buddies out in Houston and we were talking about of making that pivot, making those moves, and when it's time to sort of, reimagine what you're doing and make a pivot towards the direction that you're, that you're trying to move in. And without community, I don't think you can have some of these conversations.'cause it's a, it's a, it can be a lonely road. Like, you know, you're dealing with what you're dealing with and you're busy. And you got responsibilities and you got life and stuff like that. So like sitting down. And then I think to be an entrepreneur too, you actually have to have a, sort of mindset that doesn't really allow you to complain much. And you know, venting can sometimes seem like complaining. So sometimes you need that other person that. You can lean on that. It doesn't feel like complaining'cause they get it too. Like it's just something y'all dealing with. So it's a, you know, it's a conversation. So from a community standpoint, I would say those three pillars are what I try to, and also members or, or mentors. Mentors and advisors. You know, people who have ran the, the route to already or, you know, ran the race in their own way and have something to share. and so those are, those are the community, pillars. I try to keep myself around.
Kenny:I like that. And from what I'm hearing, like you're definitely. It could be deliberate, it may not be, but you're connecting with people at different points in their journey, right? You're connecting with somebody who's at the tail end of their journey, like they're, maybe they're transitioning out of, being a founder, being in corporate America.
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:people add value. You're, you've got those people who are also in the trenches just like you. And then it's really cool to see you leverage that tool that you mentioned school. To really have a community of people trying to learn and figure out maybe their early stage. That's always good to hear. And I'm assuming, or maybe I don't even have to assume, I can ask you, like you're able to learn from people at these different points in their journeys, right? Like I.
Nate:Yeah, absolutely. I would say on, on, and funny enough, I, I didn't even think about it like that, but you're exactly right. Like it's different stages and different journeys, and I think there's something to learn from everyone, within their journey. Even the people that, you know, I set out to teach or I set out to help, know, I'll read some of the posts that they, that they put on there sometimes, and I'll be like, wow. That's an interesting way to do that,
Kenny:Mm-hmm.
Nate:you know, I never thought that way, or, you know, I'll see people sort of talking to each other and I'm, you know, I'm just kind of blown away by the fact that, that community aspect of people just being able to have a platform to communicate with each other,
Kenny:know,
Nate:allows people to share,
Kenny:results
Nate:and, you know, things of that nature, with each other and help each other out. So I learn stuff every day from, from people in general?
Kenny:I love it.
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:Let's, let's transition a little bit.'cause you just mentioned, right, as a founder, you don't, you have to be okay with giving feedback, but then not complaining, like you said, right? Or taking some of that. So I'm curious. we all have to, in our journey, you're gonna have to deal with customers that are not happy. Let's, let's put it that way. So I'm curious, when a customer comes to you and they're not happy, right? They're giving you that feedback and it's not what you may want to hear, like how do you go about turning, turning that situation or from just a problem to something else?
Nate:Yeah, man, I, I don't know if I've ever gotten that question, but I deal with it. I've dealt with it. so the first thing I think about is full ownership, like total ownership. Like, okay, I'm gonna figure out what's going on, right? Like, I'm gonna figure out what's going on, even if it takes some digging. and the first thing I'm gonna do is. You know, put company in the position to where we say, okay, these people paid us to do this service. If they're not happy with it, there's something that we have to look into. Right. I try my best not to brush away any type of request or any type of like. You know, any type of concern because again, like it's a, it's an exchange, right? You exchange your money for a service and if you don't feel like you're getting the thing that you're, you've came, you've come for, we gotta approach that. So that's the first thing. And the next thing I think about is impartiality and fairness, right? sometimes my team is involved as well. So, the first stage is, okay, what's the problem? I. where did we go wrong? within that problem if we did go wrong, and then we talk internally about that. So if I have, like for, for instance, a project manager on the job who actually did something wrong, the, the first thing I try to do is sit that person down and say, Hey, like, you know, let's make sure we're not in the wrong before we. we say something back, like, let's figure out what's going on. And sometimes, you know, it, depending on the relationship or'cause business is all about relationships, right? We may not, like, we may sort of take the brute for certain things, right? Just out of all fairness and again, out of relationship building. But at the same time, like, you know, it's, it's very important for. For us to look internally first and say, okay, what did we do? if we did anything, and then sort of approach the situation. So I try to do that every time. and then lastly, I'll say
Kenny:contracts.
Nate:Having stuff on paper is one of the best things you could do. And some of our best clauses and clauses in our, in our contracts have come from a lot of pain. Like have come from, you know, customers or clients or people saying, Hey, you guys did this. And we're like, no, we, you know, no we didn't. Right. Like out of all good intention, we're like. You know, we, or we didn't mean to do that or whatever, or you guys said you were gonna do this and well, we had the best intention of course, working with you. So we would've never, you know, just did that on purpose. But because it's not on paper, it's hard to, it's, it's hard to argue that,
Kenny:know,
Nate:and so, so every time something like that goes wrong, you know, it, it becomes another exercise or becomes another opportunity to look at our contracts. And say, okay, what's missing here? Where was the, where was the divide? Where was the, misunderstanding? And if we can put something in that contract that prevents that from happening again, again, we'll do it in a heartbeat. And
Kenny:I love it.
Nate:yeah, those are some of the things that, that we try to do, at vision.
Kenny:That, that contract piece is big. That's really big. every time a contract is put in front of me, I immediately think I will pay a lawyer whatever they need so that I do not have to see this contract again. I kid you not Nate, like every single time.'cause it's like. This is, it's overwhelming and like, but like you said, like the beauty is in the details is, is, is a, is a, a phrase I learned, from my time in sales and it truly is something where it sets the expectations and then once those signatures are dried on that contract or signed electronically, like that's the commitment.
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:you said, and, and, and if you have acknowledgement on the front end, like you said in terms of what did we do,
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:where did this go off on the rails, along with that acknowledgement of the commitment,
Nate:Right.
Kenny:in a good place.
Nate:Yeah. Yeah,
Kenny:Really good place.
Nate:we, and, and you know, we try to, we try to do business in a way that we're not veering too much away from what we're saying we're doing on paper. Sometimes people don't read the contract. So in that way, we, and even sometimes, even, even sometimes, we decide internally or we decide as a group to say, okay, we get that you didn't read it. Here's what we're gonna do. Because in business you don't wanna leave a bad taste in people's mouths.
Kenny:it's
Nate:just not, it's, it's not a good thing to do in business. It doesn't help it, it doesn't help. Right. And I also read a book
Kenny:called,
Nate:the Laws of Success and it talks, one of the laws is do more, do more than you're paid for anyone that you see that has reached a high level of success, they've done a lot more than they're paid for. And so we try to take that philosophy literally and say, even though you didn't see that in the contract, you know what? We got it. And a lot of companies won't do that, but I think that's one of the reasons. You know, first, second year in business, we grew 200%, right? Because if you're hiring someone to do something, you want the highest form of leverage period, right? I don't care if someone's paying me a hundred thousand dollars to do something, they wanna make a hundred million and they wanna make 200 million if possible. And so it's not that they don't want to pay you, it's literally just, they just want the highest leverage. And, you know, that's fair.'cause you're in business and you're in business to make money. And so, so if you just make sure that, that point of that, that you're giving them that leverage, and you're, you get your fair reward for it. There should be no issue.
Kenny:That is a, a lesson to learn specifically, I think, again, in B2B,
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:like B2B specifically, where, like you said, you may have to, the, the letter is the letter in some cases, but then in other cases there's a, there's definitely some gray area.
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:and depending on where that you want that relationship to grow is, you know, where you take that gray area.
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:You know? I love that.
Nate:At the high, it's happening at the highest levels. I'll be the first to tell you. it's small businesses. They're the ones really looking at contracts and being, you know, stern. We, that's a policy, you know, et cetera. At the highest levels. I'll tell you man, like they're at lunch and dinner saying, you know what? I got you
Kenny:Mm-hmm.
Nate:You know, I got you. Business owner to business owner, or you know, just man to man or woman to woman. Like, I got you.
Kenny:I love it. So let's, let's talk a little bit about, so the. Correct me if I'm wrong. The first product you offered was, was it render,
Nate:Yeah. Render vision. Yeah.
Kenny:render vision? Right. And so talk a little bit about what that product actually does and like where do you grow from there in terms of the products that you're gonna be offering.
Nate:So it's all about visualization. if you want someone to invest in something or buy it, or you know, approve it or whatever, they gotta be able to see it. And so for a very, very long time, people were trying to pitch ideas with pitch decks and PDFs and and letters and lines, it just doesn't work like that. You know, there's so much competition out here from a real estate standpoint, from just like general, you know, marketplace standpoint, that you need to be able to differentiate yourself. And so we started in 2020 still 3D renderings, which at the time it was extremely helpful'cause you could take a piece of land that, you know, you didn't know what to do with, you had this, you know, site plan or whatever. And we, and you could give us some mood images, inspirational images. I wanted to look like this and have these type of windows and we could assemble something that looked very close to, what was actually gonna be there in a very short amount of time. they were able to take that, you know, raise money, get approvals, things like that. And that's how we grew
Kenny:initially.
Nate:And so, that then sort of graduated into animation videos. So we started doing these fly-throughs, which is even more powerful, right? because it's
Kenny:storytelling,
Nate:right? The, the first thing gets people to see it. It gets people to understand the context and you just, you know, be able to imagine it. But it still took some imagination. It took the, an imaginative individual to turn that into a story that they didn't bond into. And we know people buy stories like you're in sales, like people buy into stories and people buy even more and more frequently when their heart is attached to it or when their motion is. And so we understood that and went into animation
Kenny:videos.
Nate:that started to move and so, you know, share different pieces of the property or it would show a, a piece of B-roll, a person that popped up that's smiling or happy or someone using the place or, or whatever it is. I. And again, there again, we saw people get millions and millions and millions and hundreds of millions of dollars in either funding, approvals and stuff like that. From, from doing
Kenny:that,
Nate:from there, we then just tried to solve the next problem. Right? What's the next problem? Well, a lot of luxury developments, a lot of bigger developments, you would be surprised are having trouble with sales. They have a lot of issues with sales conversions. because now the first two things that I mentioned are even now becoming pretty and archaic. Then you mix in the issue of not being able to physically go to certain places and that the fact that, you know, everything is going online and more digital. And so that created a unique opportunity for us to create an immersive, AI powered. Conversational
Kenny:walkthrough
Nate:or or property viewing tool and experience tool that people can interact with from the comfort of their, of their home from anywhere in the world. And they could sort of literally in the new place that they're going to, buy or rent or lease or whatever, um, while they're, you know, in the comfort of their home. And so that's what we're building now is like. A more immersive, a more sort of sensory and emotion driven, approach to, property walkthroughs.
Kenny:That's, I got the, thoughts popping into my head all the time when, when people are, are, are, are talking. And I promise you all, it wasn't just like a hamster in a wheel, but uh. I, I, as you were talking, I was think of thinking of the Disney experience where you'd like do like the four D movie or, I think one time I wrote like the avatar ride and it was like, as you go through the world, you're like smelling stuff and like wind and water's like hitting your face, but you get the full experience and for real estate in particular. The only time we most, most of the time most of us get to see the actual property. It's like a blank canvas. So to your point, like imagining, like filling in the blank for people a little bit so that they can be immersed in it and they can like actually see themselves there. That sounds like a four D movie experience that I would pay for. The way you explained it, Nate, like that sounds amazing.
Nate:Well, you hit it right on the head, man. I couldn't have explained it actually any better. just imagine that plus agent, an AI agent that can walk you through the, or teleport you through anywhere in the, in the property tell you about everything about in, in the area or about that particular unit getting ready to buy or lease or rent or whatever. and being able to book meetings for you. And basically do anything that, that you needed to do and as it pertains
Kenny:to,
Nate:making that buying decision.
Kenny:I love that. Let's talk a little bit, so where do, so what does that look like? Is that gonna be a host of products, right? Is that where you're thinking, where there's a whole suite, right, that vision provides at the end of the day? Or do you feel like you're doing that with your next, your next product release, all those things that you talked about?
Nate:Yeah, so all of that is in one product. We want to make sure that there are three that
Kenny:are,
Nate:are very strong, three features that are very strong, like the immersive walkthrough, conversational AI agent, and then the data, right, the data gathering. we're adding some, you know, peppering some small features in there as well, like being able to sort
Kenny:of
Nate:talk, to the agent and say, Hey, change this couch in here, and it immediately just changes. So we have that feature now that we've added, but it's gonna be a process of letting people use the software, having companies use the, you know, use the software. figuring out what people want. because while it's a B2B product, it's very much so a consumer user experience. So we have to know, you know, what people are wanting to see. of course we gotta think for them a little bit, just like Steve Jobs esque sort of thinking, but. You know, once we approach them with the tools, like, here are the things that you have at your fingertips. Now, it's really up to them to figure out what's much more, what's most important for them.
Kenny:Got it. So let's talk a little bit about your team that you've built to, to, offer the products that you're focusing on. Like, what does your team look like, what are their backgrounds? Or maybe for anybody who may be interested, you throwing out the, the, the topic of AI a couple times, right? And so I'm curious like what your team looks like now and maybe potentially areas where you may be looking for, some additions to your team.
Nate:Yeah, so again, you know, is different gears and I think, you know, we're coming to an age where there'll be probably one individual, or maybe two that are responsible for each gear. so we've become a lot more lean, within the past year. And I'll just be honest, like we were last year, we were at close to 30
Kenny:people.
Nate:and that was everybody from leadership to middle management
Kenny:to
Nate:artists, you know, things like that. And we could be working on, you know, every bit of 40 projects at one time. Things have gotten a lot leaner to where we're closer to 10 now. And, that is artists and, some of them are 10 99, artists that we work with, like 3D artists to build the
Kenny:experiences.
Nate:my assistant,
Kenny:co-founder
Nate:of path, which is the AI sort of assistant tool well as, uh. Some middle management and, and yeah, marketing. Marketing, personnel.
Kenny:I
Nate:think things are gonna get even more leaner. probably not for us, but just in general. You know, I think, I think that 10 mark is like gonna become the, the sweet spot, like eight to
Kenny:Mm.
Nate:individuals,
Kenny:because
Nate:there are really kind of like four core. A functions of a business. There's like finance, there's operations production, there is marketing and sales, and then yeah, marketing and sales.
Kenny:Got it. Okay.
Nate:Yeah. So,
Kenny:Interesting. Yeah, it's interesting to hear, founders in this, this space that we're in now. There's a lot of uncertainty,
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:around the things. But the one thing I will say is that the business owners I've been talking to, they feel like they can definitely do more with less Now,
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:the, the effects on the. The job market and things like that, I think they're still playing out. but just being able to do more with less
Nate:Mm-hmm.
Kenny:on in your business journey. I think that's, that's a net win, for businesses, more businesses to survive past that, that critical, that critical mass point of say like a year or two. Right. so that's good to hear.
Nate:Yeah. Yeah. I think it's gonna dramatically shift the way that we earn and the way that we, understand just transactional marketplace conditions. I always give the analogy of like. The gener, the generations before us, like to leap into our entrepreneurship in a creative way. They didn't do that. Right? So telling someone that that is the career that they're gonna jump into, after high school is like telling them that you're getting ready to create, you know, to commit suicide or something like that. Right. So it's like, know, things are gonna change for us too. Like our children are gonna be like, yeah, I'm about to. Like, I'm about to, I don't even know. Like we don't even know what the future's gonna look like, but it's gonna be different, right? It's gonna be,
Kenny:For sure. That's for sure.
Nate:yeah. Yeah. It may not even be starting a business, right? It might just be being a creator. Like, I'm going to do, gonna do, you know, music in a, or I'm in a. I don't know, man, it, it's, it's so hard to tell the, what the next generation will be building and what they will be focused on, and I think because of the dramatic of invention called ai, and this dramatic effect on the marketplace. It is hard to, the, the future is quite blurry. And this is for everyone. You know this, like most experts are saying that they have no, absolutely no idea. I mean, we have ideas about, implications on the marketplace as we know it now, but I think we'll be living in a different world, like quite literally. I think creators and, and, and people who have creative minds will thrive. And I actually wrote a book on it. It's called Design to Win. but generally I. It is tough. And I'll just say this last thing, like I read a book called The Co Coming Wave. It talks about AI and it gave this analogy of, the industrial age and how people were working on a farm. And all of a sudden, like, you know, they see a tractor ride, pa ride past and you see like what you do as your job, like literally driving past you. And, you know, you're looking at all of your, the people who you're working with and you're like, what the heck was that? Like? And that's kind of where we're at right now. Like, you know, the tractor is literally driving by and we're still working and it's coming towards us.
Kenny:So, yeah. I love to that man. I am not, offended by your shameless plug of your book Designed to win. I love that. I love that. I've been, I take, I, I read in bits and pieces. So
Nate:Yeah.
Kenny:I'm not one of the people that reads a book front to back. I, I read the pages and then I try to apply them to my life. but so far it's actually a quick read. So for those that are interested, definitely a quick read and I appreciate, you not giving us a really thick book that I have to carry, carry around. So for those that are looking for, some reading material, make sure you check out Nate's book there. I am not ashamed of that plug. Nate, I appreciate that.
Nate:Man got.
Kenny:So I wanna, you know, last question I'll ask is in terms of, not dream clients, but where do you see, is there a client or a group of, prospects that you haven't gotten in front of yet that should be checking out your, your product?
Nate:My dream has always to be, has always been to work with cities like futuristic, forward thinking cities, because I'm obsessed with cities in general and just like the, you know, ecosystem of cities. And I'm obsessed with technology and so. That is my dream client. so much so that I've even thought about just packing up and moving to Dubai.'cause that seems like the next, the, the place that, that's
Kenny:happening.
Nate:But I Would say that is most likely, I, I might be of, speaking in speaking into existence here, but man, that is my absolute dream is to. Work with a very forward thinking city that has problems that need to be solved
Kenny:asap.
Nate:Right. and I, and I think that's where some of the solutions that we've created are gonna become very relevant. Right. Um. And so like I said, as we've been growing the company, it's become, the question has become how can we solve bigger problems? And I think we'll just continue and continue and continue and continue to do that until hopefully, you know, by God's grace we get there to where we're working with, you know, that dream
Kenny:client.
Nate:But, besides that, like I can't really think of anything too high. Yeah.
Kenny:I was like, that seems like that's a big. Yeah. Yeah,
Nate:yeah, man. like I said, it's, it's one of the things that drew me to, to architecture, and it's, it's the reason why I went into urban planning is because to think at the city scale, man, here's the thing. Everything is kind of one thing, you'll probably understand what I'm saying. What I'm saying with this a little bit, a little bit deeper, everything is kind of one thing and one thing is everything. And so the way I look at a building or the way we look at, you know, a piece of technology, I. Or a problem that we're solving is the way that it's looked at, at the highest level. So just like how a, you know, atom is, has the same sort of, makeup as, we see as the universe. And it, it is like, it's like if we can approach. Or if I can approach the city scale looking to solve problems, just in the same manner that we're looking to solve problems for a building or problems that a real estate developer is having, then that would
Kenny:absolutely,
Nate:fulfill any sort of dream or whatever that I,
Kenny:that I have.
Nate:yeah.
Kenny:I appreciate that answer, man. In closing, I want to thank you. For being a guest, sharing your story. It's amazing. I love what you're building with vision, the products that you're offering, like render vision. looking forward to hearing about the companies that are out there leveraging, your solution and even consumers, like you said, you've got a dual focus. in closing two things. how can folks stay, up to date on the brand and then the lasting thought that you want our listeners and guests. tuning in right now to take away from this conversation.
Nate:Yeah, so my socials, all my socials is just my name. also what my website's, just my name nate robert aza.com.
Kenny:so
Nate:I post a lot of stuff on LinkedIn and stuff like that, so, you know, all of it connects to each other, so it won't be too hard. one thing that I want people to take away from this conversation is that, first of all, no thinking is too big. So I believe that we all have this sort of fire in us deep down somewhere that wants to create something, we all have it. and whatever you can imagine, never lose sight of it. Never lose that touch of whatever that thing is, like keep dreaming that, keep seeing it, believing it, and it is gonna happen. I. the other thing is start small, right? Start with something that you know, you can start with today. that be one step, whether that be one conversation, whether it be, you know, one rep. Just start with it today. And that's how those small steps start to become big steps. And, you know, you start to see the stuff you dream about.
Kenny:I ain't gotta say else. Nate, I appreciate you. For coming on the, the, the platform again. And for our listeners, thank you. Thank you. Thank you for tuning into another great episode of The Beyond Normal Podcast
Nate:Yeah. it brother.
Kenny:podcast.
