“I became deeply frustrated with the role of intermediaries in real estate deals,” explains Blake Owens, Founder and Principal of Augustus and the innovative platform Agrippa. “There are excellent brokers, but many would simply copy and paste our pitch deck into an email blast, disappear for months during due diligence, and then return at closing with an invoice for $600,000 or $800,000.”
This frustration, born from Owens’ experience as a Chief Investment Officer who closed over $600 million in transactions with institutional partners like Silverstein, Carlyle, and Lennar, became the catalyst for creating a platform that fundamentally changes how capital seekers and providers connect in commercial real estate.
From Boxing Family to Finance Innovator
Despite his youth, Owens brings substantial experience to his venture. Born and raised in Las Vegas to a family with over 100 years of Nevada history, his path took a dramatic turn when he attended boarding school in Connecticut at age 15.
“My parents didn’t go to college. They were both fighters, my mom was a boxer, my dad a martial artist, so I grew up in a structured household,” Owens recalls with a hint of pride. This discipline served him well as he became school president by his senior year and went on to UCLA as the first person in his family to attend college.
After pivoting from pre-med to economics, Owens’ career accelerated at breakneck speed by cold-calling 50 places to secure his first analyst position, moving to a boutique investment bank, and eventually landing at Goldman Sachs in San Francisco.
Seeking something more entrepreneurial, Owens transitioned to commercial real estate. When a multifamily developer from Vegas offered him a position, he didn’t hesitate: “I cut my lease, packed my bags, and moved back to Vegas the next week.”
“It was learning to swim by diving into the deep end,” he explains. By 24, he was named Chief Investment Officer, and by 26, he had closed over $600 million in transactions with institutional partners.
Eliminating the Middleman
The idea for Agrippa emerged in late 2021 from a simple question: “Why not allow developers and syndicators to communicate directly with capital providers and save money in that process?”
When Owens approached his first investor in early 2022, the response was telling. The investor didn’t ask about the product or market but simply: “When are you going to quit your job?” The question wasn’t about details—it was about commitment.
Since launching in Q2 of 2022, the platform has achieved impressive milestones:
- Over $3.5 billion in deal flow (approaching $4 billion)
- More than 400 vetted companies as users
- A rigorous screening process that accepts less than 50% of applicants
“We manually vet each signup,” Owens emphasizes. “Many platforms don’t maintain high quality control, resulting in garbage in, garbage out.”
AI and Game Theory: The Competitive Edge
What distinguishes Agrippa is its sophisticated application of artificial intelligence and game theory to the real estate investment process. The platform collects preference data, property types, locations, partner characteristics, and combines this with observed user activity to create curated connections.
“This creates more meaningful interactions,” Owens explains. “You’re not just sending interest indications to deals you may not actually pursue.”
This approach was recently tested in a ground lease sale transaction that originated on Agrippa. Owens worked closely with the seller to identify multiple counterparties, applying game theory principles to the negotiation.
“We analyzed the pros and cons of each potential buyer and developed communication strategies to maximize the terms offered,” he explains. The transaction closed successfully in February, with the ground lease selling back to the owner of the physical building, a large gaming company.
Hard-Earned Startup Wisdom
Building Agrippa hasn’t been without challenges. Owens candidly shares several key lessons:
- “However long you think it’s going to take, it’s going to take significantly longer,” he says with a knowing smile. “Transitioning from real estate finance to becoming a tech founder involves a massive learning curve.”
- He emphasizes the importance of addressing problems you’ve personally experienced: “Many founders try to build solutions to problems they’ve never encountered, so they don’t understand the true pain points.”
- On investors, Owens is particularly thoughtful: “All the money we’ve raised has been from individuals or companies I’ve known for a very long time. This established trust allows me to retain significant control in determining our direction.”
Market Intelligence in Uncertain Times
Owens offers sharp insights on current market conditions affecting real estate investment:
- “Opportunity zones provide an attractive means to boost post-tax returns,” he explains. “When combined with accelerated depreciation, it can boost returns 30+ percent after tax—essential in an environment where costs are high and prices have decreased significantly.”
- On institutional capital, he notes: “Private equity is moving more selectively, with higher hurdles to reach a term sheet. Securing institutional investment now requires exceptional preparation.”
- His market analysis is equally incisive: “The Green Street commercial property price index dropped about 22% from mid-2022 to early 2024 and has only recovered about 4.5%. From an opportunity cost perspective, real estate offers more upside potential to return to average values than public equities, which have already seen substantial gains.”
The Future: AI-Powered Negotiation
Looking forward, Owens is particularly enthusiastic about Agrippa’s continued integration of AI and game theory. The company is developing an internal tool called “Marcus” that will serve as a predictive assistant for negotiations.
“When term sheets arrive, you want to understand the most strategic response to each situation,” Owens explains. “Artificial intelligence helps us identify opportunities that humans might miss because it can calculate possibilities much faster.”
This tool aims to bridge the knowledge gap between institutional and non-institutional players by helping less experienced negotiators understand “what to say, what not to say, when to say it, and what constitutes an appropriate ask.”
With recent team expansion and enhanced AI capabilities, Agrippa is positioned to play a significant role in the real estate investment landscape as the market recovers.
“I don’t expect the market to return to the activity levels we saw in 2021 anytime soon,” Owens acknowledges, “but movement toward that direction is likely.”
