WeWork Founder Adam Neumann Brings ‘Conscious Community’ Real Estate Startup To Saudi Arabia

Forbes

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/  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

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.

Category

Transcript

Recommended