Where We Buy: Retail Real Estate with James Cook

Trust Is the Real Barrier to AI in Retail Real Estate - Where We Buy #393

August 3, 2026·28 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Alim Uderbekov is CEO and Co-Founder of Surfaice, an AI operating system built for the full retail store lifecycle, from lease administration and CAM reconciliation to construction budgeting, punch walks, and facility management. Speaking live from the ICSC PropTech stage in Las Vegas, Uderbekov explains how pre-trained agents plug into a company's existing systems to eliminate repetitive work — by his count, roughly a million clicks to open a single store. He also discusses trust and adoption barriers in commercial real estate, his path from aerospace engineering to retail, and The Store Development AI Playbook: A Field Guide, co-authored with Schaefer Jones of the JD Sports Fashion store development team.   James Cook is the Head of Retail Research for JLL.  Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify  Listen: WhereWeBuy.show  Email: jamesd.cook@jll.com  YouTube: http://everythingweknow.show/ Read more retail research here:  http://www.us.jll.com/retail Theme music is Run in the Night by The Good Lawdz, under Creative Commons license.

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