British AI Housing Search Platform SearchSmartly Raises £1.25m Seed Round

London-based PropTech startup SearchSmartly has secured a £1.25m seed round to continue its mission to help house hunters find their new home through AI. According to UK Tech News, some notable names participated in the round including Carwow founder James Hind, serial PropTech investor Antony Senny (who has also backed Boomin) as well as locally based funds IFG.VC and founders factory.

The startup, which was was founded by former race-car Aerodynamics Engineer Taha Dar in 2018 and currently serves London and the surrounding area, plans to use the funds to improve its offering and expand to all major UK cities in the next 18 months.

SearchSmartly uses AI to take user input on questions such as commute time, important nearby facilities and move-in date as well as budget and bedrooms to generate a 'SmartScore'  for properties that meet the criteria and ultimately match users with their ideal homes. Via a network of affiliated estate agents, SearchSmartly claims to have around 100,000 listings on its platform and markets itself to newcomers to London who may not know much about which neighbourhood would be right for them.

One of a new breed of property marketplace sites focusing on the demand side and using technology to go beyond a classifieds 'shop window' model and towards match-making, SearchSmartly will have its work cut out in the ultra-competitive UK portals scene. The firm currently employs 16 people according to Linkedin including several in house developers and several investors who are listed as employees.