Two summers ago, real estate tech startup First was raking in the big bucks. Now, after four years of operation, the company is being acquired. RE/MAX Holdings, the parent company of RE/MAX, recently announced that it has acquired First. The technology company is known for creating the First app, which uses AI to identify potential sellers for real estate agents. From there, the app helps agents build a database of contacts that can be sorted based on their likelihood to sell.

There's no question AI and machine learning are having a transformational impact on the home buying and refinancing journey. And while the long-term reverberations of AI's expanding role are fascinating and for some worrying, companies are realizing that marrying people with machine intelligence is the path to capitalize on AI's potential. Artificial intelligence has generated lots of unrealistic expectations. There's no shortage of vendors, or internal project plans liberally sprinkled with references to computer vision, supervised learning and other forms of the technology, with little connection to its real capabilities. Merely calling a CRM "AI-powered," for example, doesn't make it any more effective, but it might help with fundraising.

As the cost to do business increases due to regulatory and other burdens, one expert explained lenders will increasingly look to artificial intelligence to replace humans, but he has one question: will Millennials accept it? Nominations for HousingWire's Tech100 Award opened at the beginning of this month, and now the early-bird pricing deadline is quickly approaching. One of the biggest changes to this year's award is the addition of our editorial advisory committee. This year, for the first time ever, nominees will be reviewed by an advisory committee, made up of some of the best minds in the housing industry. This committee will then advise HousingWire's internal award review board of potential finalists before the winners are selected. Click here to see who is on this committee.