WeWork Founder Adam Neumann Brings ‘Conscious Community’ Real Estate Startup To Saudi Arabia
The co-working billionaire has opened a branch of his Andreessen Horowitz-backed co-living startup Flow in Riyadh.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/iainmartin/2024/09/20/wework-founder-adam-neumann-brings-conscious-community-real-estate-startup-to-saudi-arabia/
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Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/iainmartin/2024/09/20/wework-founder-adam-neumann-brings-conscious-community-real-estate-startup-to-saudi-arabia/
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TechTranscript
00:00Today on Forbes, WeWork founder Adam Neumann brings conscious community real estate startup
00:06to Saudi Arabia.
00:09Adam Neumann's real estate startup, Flow, has quietly opened its first properties in
00:14Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
00:17It's the latest extension of the billionaire's bid to crack co-living and apartment rentals
00:22after WeLive, his previous attempt at real estate, was canned after he stepped down as
00:27WeWork's CEO.
00:29After buying over $1 billion of apartment blocks over America's Sun Belt and raising
00:34$350 million from Andreessen Horowitz, also known as A16Z, in 2022, Neumann has outfitted
00:42Flow Properties with co-working spaces, yoga classes, and hotel-style housekeeping services
00:48in an attempt to bring, quote, community to housing complexes.
00:54Flow Nargis, quote, soft-launched in August, peddling so-called, quote, conscious community
01:00and two- and three-bedroom apartments in a compound in the Ann Nargis area near Riyadh's
01:05airport.
01:06The furnished apartments start from $3,500 a month and showcase Flow's formula of bundling
01:12housing with services like laundry and housekeeping, and amenities like pools, gyms, and bowling
01:17alleys.
01:19A YouTube video shot in August by one of the first residents of Flow Nargis shows a partially
01:25completed and largely deserted building.
01:28The compound, with its 238 apartments, was built by Saudi construction group Safa, and
01:33it appears that Flow retrofitted the building for international tastes by tearing down the
01:38walls that traditionally separate male and female areas of the gym in service of a more
01:42WeWork boho chic aesthetic.
01:45In a statement, Flow spokesperson Amy Stephens said, quote,
01:50Flow is designed for everyone.
01:52Design changes to the building are to align the building with our brand.
01:57Flow has three properties with close to 1,000 apartments in the Saudi capital, with construction
02:01slated to finish by the end of the year.
02:04Newman's startup had bought the properties in partnership with private local investors,
02:08according to Stephens.
02:10She added that Saudi's sovereign wealth fund, which backs A16Z, has not invested in Flow.
02:17Andreessen Horowitz's decision to invest in Newman's Flow in August 2022 sparked confusion
02:23following WeWork's infamous implosion from a $47 billion valuation.
02:29Newman tried to mount a bid earlier this year to buy back WeWork after its share price cratered
02:33and it filed for bankruptcy protection.
02:36But his offer, which would have seen Flow acquire WeWork for $650 million, was rebuffed.
02:42Instead, real estate software group Yardi bought the bankrupt startup for just $450
02:47million after striking a deal with WeWork's lenders.
02:52When Newman first announced Flow, its business model was something of a mystery.
02:57Flow's job listings touted a, quote, ambitious vision for the future of living, while in
03:01Newman's speeches it appeared to encompass a mess of ideas extending from crypto-enabled
03:06financial services to a nebulous plan for tenants to build equity with their rent.
03:11It also posited the idea of renters plunging their own toilets to build, quote, ownership.
03:17The startup opened its first Flow-branded properties in Fort Lauderdale and Miami, Florida,
03:22in April, with a more modest pitch focused around offering medium- to long-term leases
03:27at condos with an eco-friendly veneer.
03:30Flow's new website touts its values as, quote, commit, grow, love, and oneness.
03:37Newman appears to be exporting a similar concept to the kingdom, where he headlined the Sovereign
03:42Wealth Fund's annual Davos in the Desert summit last year.
03:47Flow Nargis, earlier this month, hosted a cacao ceremony combined with a dance class
03:51and yoga classes.
03:53Flow Riad posted on its Instagram account in August, quote, dive into an art class,
03:59nail that yoga pose, or uncover the hidden gems in our beloved city with your new friends.
04:05The WeWork co-founder has a tangled history with Saudi Arabia and its Sovereign Wealth
04:10Fund, which has emerged as a major backer of both tech startups and investors over the
04:14last decade, but remains controversial because of the country's human rights record and
04:19the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
04:22SoftBank pumped more than $20 billion in equity and debt into Newman's WeWork, largely with
04:27money from the Middle Eastern Kingdom's Sovereign Wealth Fund.
04:30It was one of the main backers of SoftBank's Vision Fund, the world's largest VC fund.
04:38For full coverage, check out Ian Martin's piece on Forbes.com.
04:43This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.
04:45Thanks for tuning in.