Responsible Innovation: Navigating AI Adoption in Commercial Real Estate

By Brielle Scott for Market Share Blog | November 10, 2025

As artificial intelligence continues to reshape industries, commercial real estate leaders are grappling with a critical question: How do we innovate responsibly?

In a special episode on the NAIOP Inside CRE podcast, NAIOP Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Shaine Anderson, CAE, facilitated a conversation with three industry leaders: Carrie Denning Jackson, director of innovation and sustainability at Jamestown; Colin Joynt, senior vice president and chief information officer at BXP; and Will O’Donnell, managing partner at Prologis Ventures. Their discussion on AI adoption in their organizations led to insights on how to balance experimentation with thoughtful oversight.

O’Donnell introduced a compelling framework borrowed from Amazon’s Jeff Bezos: the concept of “two-way door” and “one-way door” decisions. Most technology decisions, he argued, are reversible. If a pilot program fails, you can walk it back, learn and iterate. These are two-way doors. But some decisions – those involving irreversible commitments or significant exposure – are one-way doors and require deeper scrutiny.

This mindset can allow companies to move quickly without being reckless. By treating most AI initiatives as pilot programs, organizations can test hypotheses, gather feedback, and refine their approach without betting the farm. The key is to avoid analysis paralysis. As O’Donnell put it, “Don’t spend three years studying whether to use ChatGPT – create a sandbox and test it.”

Denning Jackson emphasized the importance of fostering a “culture of safety” to support innovation. She estimated her team has over 20 pilot programs currently running, ranging from small-scale experiments to major infrastructure investments. Each pilot is governed by clear guardrails, including monthly reviews with the company’s information security and engineering teams. This ensures transparency, documentation and alignment across departments.