As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes professional practice worldwide, Chief Executive Officers from the valuation sector have explored how emerging technologies are changing valuation, challenging established methods while reinforcing the central importance of professional judgement, accountability, and trust.
The forum was the AVAA’s Chief Executive Officer Roundtable convened on 19 February 2025. The industry leaders in attendance were not debating whether artificial intelligence would affect the valuation profession, but how deeply and how quickly that change was already underway. What emerged was a shared recognition that AI is beginning to reshape the structural foundations of valuation practice, not just its tools.
Much of the discussion centred on AI’s growing ability to aggregate vast amounts of historical sales data and assess that information at speed. Participants reflected on how this capability is transforming market analysis, enabling patterns and relationships to be identified almost instantly. At the same time, there was a strong awareness that data volume does not equate to insight. Context, relevance, and professional judgement remain critical in determining which sales matter and why.
The conversation then turned to condition reporting. AI systems can now draw on years of historic condition reports, photographs, and notes to infer how condition has influenced price outcomes over time. While this offers powerful analytical support, the Roundtable recognised that condition assessment is rarely binary. Nuance, inspection limitations, restoration history, and market sentiment still require human interpretation.
Attention also moved forward, literally, to AI-generated price forecasting. Tools capable of modelling future price movements using economic indicators such as interest rates, inflation, and consumer or business confidence are becoming more common. These forecasts may assist with scenario planning, but the group was clear that predictive outputs must be handled carefully and clearly distinguished from professional opinions of value.
As the discussion unfolded, AI’s role in drafting valuation reports emerged as both an opportunity and a risk. It was recognised that automation can assist with structure, data synthesis, and presentation, but responsibility for assumptions, reasoning, and conclusions remains firmly with the valuer.
Crucially, all of these developments were considered through the lens of how valuation reports are relied upon, in courts, for insurance, for taxation, and for financial decision-making. Meeting participants noted the importance of alignment with international guidance, including that issued by the International Valuation Standards Council, particularly around transparency, explainability, and professional accountability.
The Roundtable closed with a clear sense that AI is not a distant challenge, but a present one. These themes will be explored in depth at the AVC26 Conference, where the profession will continue the conversation about how technology and judgement must evolve together.
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