What Future City Innovation Lab does

Future City Innovation Lab (لابراتوار نوآوری شهرآینده) is a privately held innovation laboratory and entrepreneurship platform headquartered in Tehran, Iran, founded around 2017 by Mahan Mehrvarz and Pouyan Bizeh. The lab operates across five internal teams (design, growth, talent, learning, and operations) and functions as a portfolio of early-stage products and services spanning PropTech, business intelligence, smart building management, and digital marketplaces. Its core product, Deem (دییم), is a fractional property investment platform that enables collective co-ownership of real estate, targeting the structural affordability gap in Iranian housing where the average waiting period for home purchase exceeds a century. The lab also operates Viden (an Office 365-based BI and management solution for engineering and design teams), BamLab (a rooftop experiential makerspace in Tehran's District 7), SABC (a gamified smart building operating system), and WePrint (an internet-based print marketplace), alongside internal tools such as Sad Box (an Arduino sound sensor).

The company serves a diverse customer base including Iranian retail investors seeking property exposure, property owners seeking liquidity, small and medium businesses undertaking futures planning and business transformation, and urban stakeholders interested in speculative design and design thinking engagements. Its go-to-market is principally direct and relationship-driven, with contact-based onboarding for investment and consulting services, supported by an organic content marketing program (Instagram Live series "Design Innovation", educational articles, and Aparat/YouTube content) and a referral community called the Future City Club (باشگاه شهرآینده). Partnerships with Design Futures Initiative (San Francisco) for workshop co-certification and with Saba Institute on social impact projects (the Hamoon Campaign) extend its ecosystem internationally and domestically. The company is founder-owned, with no disclosed institutional funding, public listing, or acquisitions, and operates exclusively within Iran.

Name

Future City Innovation Lab

Legal name

Future City Innovation Lab

Website

http://www.futurecity.ir

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Future City Innovation Lab is a Tehran-based privately held innovation laboratory founded around 2017 that operates Deem (fractional property investment), Viden (Office 365 BI), BamLab (makerspace), SABC (smart building), and WePrint, serving Iranian retail investors, SMBs, and urban stakeholders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

PropTech Real Estate Investment

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Makerspace, Innovation Lab & Fab Lab Operations (Tools, Safety, Programming) (EDAEAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Makerspaces & Fab Labs (Open Build Studios) (EDAMADAC), 3D Printing, CAD & Digital Fabrication Programs (EDAMADAH)

Keywords

• Proptech fractional investment
• Innovation lab services
• Smart building management
• Design thinking workshops
• Speculative design consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Tehran

HQ country

Iran

HQ region

Middle East

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Future City Innovation Lab operates as an innovation laboratory and entrepreneurship platform that develops and hosts multiple PropTech, smart building, business intelligence, and marketplace products. Its core offering is Deem, a fractional property investment platform enabling collective real estate co-ownership in Iran, complemented by Viden (Office 365-based business intelligence), WePrint (online printing marketplace), SABC (smart building gamification), BamLab (physical maker space), and design thinking workshops. The lab primarily serves individual investors, property owners, small and medium businesses, and urban stakeholders in the Iranian market.

Product overview

Future City Innovation Lab operates as an innovation and entrepreneurship platform offering multiple products across PropTech, business intelligence, smart building management, and digital services. Core products include Deem (fractional property investment platform), Viden (Office 365 business intelligence), BamLab (physical makerspace), SABC (smart building management with gamification), and WePrint (online printing marketplace). The lab also develops internal tools like Sad Box and offers services including design thinking workshops and educational series. The portfolio spans both digital platforms and physical spaces for prototyping and idea development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Deem (دییم): Fractional property investment platform enabling collective investment in real estate, addressing homeownership challenges in Iran.
• Viden
• Bam Lab (بام لب)
• SABC (سبک)
• WePrint (وی پرینت)

Products and services

• Deem (دییم) - Fractional Property Investment Platform A fractional property investment platform enabling collective investment in real estate, designed to make property ownership accessible for broader populations in Iran. It operates as a PropTech solution for analysis, valuation, investment, and property transactions, allowing multiple investors to co-own property assets and enabling gradual ownership models. The platform serves both retail investors seeking property ownership and property owners looking to sell their real estate through a pool of qualified investors.
• Viden - Business Intelligence Platform Business intelligence and integrated management solution built on Office 365, targeting engineering and design teams. Provides tools and processes that optimize all business layers for organizations, helping them achieve peak operational performance through integrated management and analytics capabilities.
• BamLab (بام‌لب) - Experiential Maker Space An experiential makerspace and prototyping facility within the lab, located on a rooftop in District 7 of Tehran. Enables testing ideas and using various construction techniques for interdisciplinary designers and emerging entrepreneurs, combining urban agriculture with architecture.
• SABC (سبک) - Smart Building Management System Smart and Efficient Operating System (سبک) that promotes smart lifestyle through gamification to minimize building energy consumption and maintenance costs. Measures occupant actions in waste recycling, water, electricity, gas, and heating/cooling management to encourage reduced consumption through gamified behavioral incentives.
• WePrint (وی پرینت) - Online Printing Marketplace Internet-based marketplace service for printing jobs that facilitates and improves print quality through decentralization and leveraging internet capabilities. Connects customers with nearby printing services and offers various printing services including paper documents and special booklets.
• Business Futures Transformation Workshop Workshop designed for businesses to teach futures planning and design techniques including horizon scanning, scenario development, backcasting, and business canvas design. Co-certified with Design Futures Initiative in San Francisco, providing international credibility to the lab's educational programs. Targets small and medium businesses in Iran seeking to plan for uncertain futures and establish new business models.

Quantifiable outcome

• Average waiting period for home purchase in Tehran exceeds 100 years based on income averages and purchasing power
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Design Futures Initiative (DFI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign Futures Initiative in San Francisco co-signs certificates for participants of the Business Futures Transformation Workshop organized by Future City Innovation Lab. This partnership brings international credibility to the lab's educational programs and certifies futures studies and strategic planning training.
• NESHA (نشا – Negin Shahrayandeh)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNESHA (Negin Shahrayandeh Consulting Engineers) is a collaborator on social impact projects. The two organizations share joy through collaborative gift-giving initiatives involving children from schools in Zabol, Sistan and Baluchestan.
• Saba Institute (موسسه صبا)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSaba Institute (a school-building organization based in Zabol) partners with Future City on social impact initiatives, including the 'Hamoon Campaign' for building a new school in Zabol. Future City designed the brand identity for the Hamoon Campaign.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Regional players

• SmartCrowd: UAE-based regulated fractional property investment platform allowing investors to buy shares of income-producing real estate. Direct conceptual peer to Deem in the MENA PropTech fractional ownership space, though operating under a different (DIFC-adjacent) regulatory regime.
• Area 2071: UAE government-backed innovation hub in Dubai hosting startups, corporates, and government entities focused on future-focused industries. Regional peer to Future City Innovation Lab with similar positioning around futures studies and design thinking, though operating under substantially different capital and policy conditions.

Direct peers

• Arrived Homes: US-based fractional real estate investment platform enabling retail investors to own shares of single-family rental properties. Closest functional analogue to Deem in terms of pooling retail capital into individual properties, although operating in a developed-market regulatory environment.
• Lofty: US-based tokenized fractional real estate investment platform (formerly RealToken). Directly comparable to Deem in product mechanic - collective ownership of property assets - though structured around blockchain tokenization rather than Deem's collective investment model.
• Yieldstreet: US alternative investment platform offering fractional access to real estate and other income-generating assets. Comparable to Deem's approach of democratizing access to real estate investment for retail capital, though at a much larger scale.
• Newlab: Brooklyn-based innovation hub and venture studio operating physical lab spaces, applied research programs, and startup incubation across multiple verticals. Direct conceptual peer to Future City Innovation Lab's hybrid makerspace, R&D lab, and entrepreneurship platform model.

Broad incumbents

• Station F: Paris-based world's largest startup campus combining co-working, makerspaces, incubator programs, and corporate innovation partnerships. Comparable in concept to Future City as a multi-stakeholder innovation platform, though at vastly greater scale.
• DMZ: Toronto Metropolitan University-operated startup incubator and innovation hub offering programs, mentorship, and physical space for early-stage companies. Comparable to Future City in providing a structured ecosystem for entrepreneurs across ideation, prototyping, and growth stages.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Futurecity_ir
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCvjg4NS2pI3RmffbyVWnvqw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/future-city-innovation-lab
• Instagraminstagram.com/futurecity.ir
• Facebookfacebook.com/futurecity.ir

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Future City Innovation Lab