Meet MetaProp: Sage Shamsai, Innovation Services

Sage Shamsai has been an integral part of the MetaProp team for over a year, beginning her tenure with us as a Masters' student at Stanford University. During her time with us she has worked specifically with our innovation services team to support our LPs and strategic partners in understanding how to navigate the strategy, roadmaps, technological adoption and transparency necessary for environmentally sustainable businesses and successful growth.

Sage shared more about her passion for the built environment and innovation and how her work sits her at the intersection of the two.

Please introduce yourself to the MetaProp community:
Although I know many of you, there are still some I have not had the pleasure of meeting.

My name is Sage, and I joined MetaProp full-time at the end of April 2022, after interning for nearly a year as a member of our Innovation Services team. Innovation Services provides consulting services for MetaProp’s strategic limited partners, including some of the most innovative global owners, operators, and developers of real estate.

My background is in engineering and development. I received my BS from UC Berkeley, and my MS from Stanford University in Civil and Environmental Engineering. In between undergrad and graduate school, I spent a year working as a structural engineer in San Francisco on projects ranging from high-rise buildings to large solar projects. This experience confirmed my passion for the built environment, but repositioned my interest towards cutting-edge innovation that would surely disrupt the architectural, engineering, and construction industries. So when returning to graduate school,  I catered my courses to cover finance, technology, and real estate. It was at this triangulation of interests that I found PropTech, and was fortunate to begin my internship at MetaProp, a firm that has pioneered investments in early stage PropTech.

Why did you decide to join MetaProp?
I joined MetaProp to pursue an intellectually stimulating and impactful role in the digital transformation of the built environment. Innovation Services’ role in servicing real estate’s most innovative investors, is incredibly inspiring for me. I am able to both utilize my existing knowledge on materials, climate science, etc. and continuously learn alongside our limited partners to ideate on innovation strategy, select and deploy technology, and provide tailored research and enrichment.

What do you hope to accomplish in this role?
I hope to support many of our limited partners in navigating their innovation strategy, roadmaps, technological adoption, and transparency that are necessary for environmentally sustainable businesses and successful growth. My work, thus far, has focused on the impending climate-related pressure that real estate developers, owners, and operators are beginning to face. From the proposed filing date of Local Law 97 approaching in New York City to the recent passing of the Inflation Reduction Act, key stakeholders are moving to get in tune with our climate crisis. Whether the solution comes in under the umbrella of ESG or simply Climate Tech, this is an issue of importance and a passion of mine.

What is your life like outside of work?
Outside of work I am quite literally, outside. I love the outdoors - if I could work outside all day, I would. There is nothing quite like sunshine and fresh air. Some of my favorite things to do outdoors are playing soccer, hiking, and skiing in the wintertime. I am happy to say, I just moved to Denver, Colorado and cannot wait to explore this beautiful state. If you are ever in Colorado, give me a shout!