Philippa Kaur

Recent policy changes and economic shifts are having an impact on international property investors looking at UK-based assets, according to UK brokers.
Butterfield in the UK commissioned market research firm Censuswide to conduct an independent survey of 300 UK-based mortgage brokers. Seven in ten (71%) reported seeing greater caution among their overseas clients in anticipation of the upcoming Autumn Budget, while 73% believe that recent tax changes have reduced the appeal of UK property.
The data also shows that three in four brokers (75%) say their clients now need more support to understand the UK market since Labour came to power in July 2024. Meanwhile, the Bank of England’s base rate continues to be a significant factor in investors’ decision making according to 67% of brokers. More

House prices have surged by 25.2% in Seoul in South Korea, making it the fastest growing prime market in the world.
After Seoul comes Tokyo in Japan (16.3%), and Dubai (15.8%) in the United Arab Emirates.
Knight Frank, which compared global markets across 46 cities, also noted that these three cities are also the fastest growing in the past five years – just in a different order.
Tokyo has seen the biggest five-year uplift (120%), followed by Dubai (107%) and Seoul (81%).
Seoul prices have surged thanks to low interest rates to boost mortgage affordability, investors in Tokyo have been boosted by a weaker Yen, while Dubai has seen an influx of international investors.
Liam Bailey, Knight Frank’s global head of research said: ‘A more complex economic outlook, particularly in the US, has added another layer of uncertainty.

“Strong underlying fundamentals, such as wealth creation and supply constraints in prime districts, will support prices, but a significant acceleration in the market is unlikely in the second half of the year.
“Prime markets are taking a collective breath. The recovery we have seen over recent quarters was aided by the expectation of lower borrowing costs, and with that timeline now pushed out, a cooling in price growth is inevitable.
“We’re seeing a more fragmented market, with some European cities showing surprising strength while former high-flyers in Asia begin to level off.”
London is currently showing a year-on-year reduction of -2.5%, while other markets seeing falling house prices include Hong Kong (14.3%), Guangzhou in China (8.9%), and Toronto in Canada (-6.7%).
Three quarters (75%) of cities saw positive house price growth over the past 12 months, at an average rate of 2.3%. More

UK-based hospitality technology company Inntelo AI has raised more than £500,000 in a pre-seed funding round to fuel its commercial growth. It follows impressive early traction, with multiple hotels adopting its AI Concierge platform.
The £506,000 round was led by venture capital fund Haatch and its partner British Business Bank, with participation from Look AI Ventures. The round also included support from several angel investors, including former executives from Trip.com, DocuSign, and others. It follows an earlier £120,000 investment from Antler, the world’s most active early-stage investor, at the company’s inception.
Inntelo AI has developed an innovative platform for hotels that combines guest and team communication seamlessly, leveraging both conversational and agentic AI to improve the guest experience while delivering real operational efficiencies. The Inntelo AI Concierge automates guest enquiries via WhatsApp or phone and converts them into coordinated tasks, improving team responsiveness across all departments, including housekeeping, maintenance, food and beverage outlets, spas, and any other services the hotel provides.
While all industries are undergoing AI transformation, hotels face unique pressures: growing competition, rising costs, and the need to attract a new generation of workers. At the same time, real estate owners, brands, and operators are re-evaluating their models as AI becomes capable of delivering human-like guest interactions and improving team coordination at scale.
Inntelo’s solution is built with deep domain expertise and aims to benefit all key stakeholders – hotel guests, teams, brands, and owners. The company has already gained traction with both independent and franchised hotels, including Radisson and Wyndham branded properties in the UK, UAE, and across Europe, with more hotels currently being onboarded.
The seed funding will help accelerate the company’s commercial growth, expanding sales and marketing while supporting ongoing customer deployments and integration with property management systems.

Inntelo AI was co-founded by CEO Asif Alidina, who has previously worked for over a decade in hotel housekeeping and facilities management. The hands-on experience of the startup’s leadership team – combined with a newly announced global advisory board of senior operators, technologists, and academics from companies including Accor, Fairmont, and Hilton – ensures the company’s solutions are aligned with real-world hospitality needs.
Asif Alidina, Co-Founder and CEO of Inntelo AI (pictured), said: “Hospitality’s AI transformation must be led from within the industry. Too often, hotels have struggled to adopt new technologies because they were developed without real operational insight. We’re incredibly excited about this new era, where the hospitality sector can not only embrace technology earlier than ever before, but also lead the way for the wider real estate and service industries.
“AI can improve guest experiences and create better working environments for hotel teams. That’s the future we’re building toward, and this round gives us the support to move faster and go further.”
Fred Soneya, Co-Founder and General Partner at Haatch, added: “Inntelo AI has all the hallmarks we look for in a high-potential startup – deep sector knowledge, real operational insight, and a product solving a clear pain point in a large, global market. We’re excited to back Asif and the team as they help hotels unlock the power of AI to transform the guest experience and streamline operations at scale.”
Angelo Burgarello, Partner at Look AI Ventures, added: “At Look AI Ventures, we invest in transformative AI technologies with the potential to reshape entire industries. Inntelo AI perfectly embodies this vision. What immediately stood out to us was Inntelo’s ability to bridge the gap between guest expectations and hotel staff operations, something most solutions address only partially. The result is a unified, elevated guest journey and highly efficient hotel staff coordination. We were particularly impressed by the team’s deep domain expertise and the capabilities of their product. We’re proud to support the Inntelo team on their mission to redefine hospitality through AI-driven innovation.” More