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Berkie
Designing Berkadia’s AI Platform for CRE
AI Platform | Internal Tools | Real Estate
Senior Product Designer
Time
Task
2023 - Present
Berkadia
Role
UX Research / Workshop
UX Design / User Test
Company
Overview
In 2023, Berkadia began its AI transformation with a bold vision: to develop Berkie, the first commercial real estate AI platform tailored for internal workflows across mortgage banking, investment sales, and loan servicing.
As the lead product designer, I helped shape and deliver Berkie’s MVP in just one quarter, focusing on making AI useful, usable, and trustworthy for non-technical users.
Opportunities
What does AI can quickly help?
While the CRE industry is rich in data, accessing and utilizing that data is slow and manual. Berkie was designed to solve this by:
1. Speeding up research & analysis
2. Reducing repetitive, document-heavy tasks
3. Empowering teams with AI-driven insights
Challange
But designing AI for CRE also meant facing key challenges:

Low familiarity with AI among users

Fear of using it “wrong”

Complexity of multi-system data integration

Many bump on the road
Roadmap
We structured the product journey into three long-term phases:
Phase 3 : Usability & Experience Enhancement
Phase 1 : AI Foundation & Validation
Phase 2 : Business Alignment & Personalization
How do we deliver the most value fast?
MVP
We swiftly developed an MVP within a month, focusing on key AI functionalities like language optimization and data analysis. This initial version aimed to streamline processes and deliver immediate value to internal users.
To ensure ongoing enhancement, we established a robust feedback system to gather user insights, which were then used to refine the AI model and improve the overall user experience.
Fast deliver the sustainable solution
MVP Solution
Learn Pain Points from Research and Data
Research

Pain 1: Users reported that retrieving simple research data takes too long, particularly in investment sales and mortgage banking, where quick access to data from sources like Costar, Yardi, RCA, and MSA is crucial.

We conducted interviews with 20 users to identify the primary business pain points.

Pain 2: Additionally, the large volume of documents per loan makes it time-consuming to pinpoint missing information.

Pain 3: The creation of marketing and loan documents for property listings, including social media content, marketing materials, BOVs, OMs, and underwriting narratives, is also a significant burden.

Pain 4: Furthermore, users generally lack of trust of AI technology, leading to uncertainty about its applications and fear of misuse.

Ideation with the Team
Workshop

We organized a strategic ideation workshop with the product and development teams to align on key user pain points and business objectives, while also gathering insights from developers regarding the feasibility of proposed solutions.
1. Prompt Library
2. User Profile
3. Data Assistant
4. Internal Tool Integration
5. Deep-research
6File Upload

Boost Property Research with Data Assistant
Feature 1

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

Sidebar Data Selection
Input Data Selection
Building Trust with Prompt Library
Feature 2

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

Prompt Lib Scroll
Prompt Share
Use Prompt
Prompt Search
Best Outcome with Deep-research
Feature 3

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

Prompt Lib Scroll
Use Prompt
Sparkle User Engagement
Rebranding

To enhance user engagement by creating a more cohesive and visually appealing experience that meets user expectations, we decided to rebrand this product. Refreshed brand identity into UI elements, interactive components, and storytelling can make interactions more intuitive and engaging. A modernized design system also improves usability, streamlining workflows and building trust in the platform.

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

Best UX Practice
Learning

AI product design differs from traditional UX, as it’s driven by technological advancements rather than user needs. Designers must adapt by aligning AI capabilities with real problems while leveraging AI tools to accelerate research and development.

The rapid pace of AI shortens product cycles, requiring agile processes to keep users at the center. However, blindly copying existing AI models can be ineffective. Instead, designers should prioritize usability, integrate AI seamlessly into workflows, and validate solutions through rapid testing.

Success in AI UX hinges on adaptability, critical thinking, and balancing innovation with human-centered design to create meaningful user experiences.

We developed a comprehensive entry point system for commercial real estate users, enabling fast and precise data retrieval for diverse research requirements. This system facilitates the extraction of pertinent data efficiently.

Learn more from this article. happy to discuss it in the comments! :)