Kazakhstan’s real estate and hospitality market is undergoing a tectonic shift: traditional square meters are turning into programmable digital services. Lost key chains, paper concierge logbooks, and barrier queues are giving way to cloud IoT platforms, computer vision, and contactless smartphone access. RAEM editors, together with the Startup Radar analytical database, have prepared a comprehensive guide to the country’s leading PropTech and Hospitality projects transforming housing, hotels, and commercial infrastructure.
Digital openings of doors and barriers every month
Geography of international expansion for Kazakh solutions
Reduction in operational costs for staff and reception
Anatomy of the Boom: Why Developers and Hoteliers Choose Kazakh Software
Historically, property development and hospitality have been considered among the most conservative industries. However, the pandemic, rising labor costs, and the rapid adoption of fintech habits (where Kazakh citizens are accustomed to resolving everyday tasks via Kaspi or Halyk) have created tremendous demand for asset autonomy.
Kazakh engineers and entrepreneurs quickly recognized the industry’s key bottlenecks:
- The “last mile” problem in short-term rentals: Hosts spent hours waiting for guests to hand over physical keys, facing theft, unauthorized subletting, and lack of oversight.
- Capital expenditures for hotels: Replacing classic magnetic keycards with global systems required millions of tenge in complete door lock mechanism replacements.
- Parking congestion: Lost paper parking tickets and sluggish payment terminals caused gridlock outside shopping malls and business centers.
- Fragmentation of space rentals: The rental market for creative spaces and studios lingered in the gray zone of classified boards and messaging apps.
Key Players in Kazakhstan’s PropTech & Hospitality Tech
1. ApartX — Ecosystem for Contactless Housing Rentals
Founder: Kanat Keldibekov • Launch Year: 2019 • Geography: Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Georgia
ApartX is a flagship Kazakh IoT startup that revolutionized the short-term apartment rental market. The platform turns standard rental apartments into fully autonomous units. The system combines a mobile app for landlords and guests with specialized smart locks (overlay and mortise mechanisms).
Key Advantages and Technological Capabilities:
- Dynamic PIN codes: A unique digital passcode is generated automatically for a specific reservation and deactivated precisely at checkout time.
- Calendar integration: Complete synchronization with global OTA platforms (Airbnb, Booking.com) and local marketplaces (Krisha.kz).
- Legal and financial compliance: Integration with remote guest identity verification and fiscal payment processing services.
- Market footprint: Tens of thousands of connected locks, scaling into Bishkek, Tashkent, Tbilisi, and preparing for global rollout.
2. Porte — Digital Keys and Virtual Concierge for Hotels
Founder: Aidana Aituarova • Launch Year: 2023 • Valuation/Grants: Taqadam Winner ($100,000)
Porte (porte.tech) is a fast-growing Kazakh TravelTech/PropTech startup addressing modern hotels’ primary headache: misplaced plastic keycards and slow reception desk queues. Porte’s proprietary breakthrough enables hotels to onboard without replacing their expensive electronic door locks (VingCard, Assa Abloy, Onity) — the platform integrates seamlessly into existing infrastructure.
Platform Functional Suite:
- Smartphone as a key: Guests unlock rooms in one tap via encrypted Bluetooth communication or a web app without downloading heavy software.
- Hotel super-app: Ordering room service, restaurant meals, dry cleaning, spa sessions, and housekeeping directly via smartphone without calling the concierge.
- Contactless Check-in/Check-out: Guest pre-arrival registration that eliminates lobby check-in lines by up to 90%.
- International acclaim: Winner of the Taqadam startup accelerator in Saudi Arabia ($100K), deployed at Hotel Kazakhstan in Almaty, with ongoing negotiations across the Middle East.
3. Parqour — Ticketless AI-Powered Smart Parking
Founder: Amirkhan Omarov • Geography: 20+ Countries (USA, MENA, Europe, CIS)
Parqour is one of Kazakhstan’s most successful tech exports in commercial real estate. The company has fully digitized parking spaces across shopping malls, airports, business complexes, and residential developments, eliminating paper receipts, plastic tokens, and cashiers.
How the Technology Works:
- AI ANPR recognition: Deep learning computer vision recognizes license plates with over 99% accuracy across all weather conditions in under 0.3 seconds.
- Frictionless exit: Parking fees are paid via QR codes, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or automated debits in partner banking apps.
- Global footprint: Successfully operating at sites across the US, UAE, Saudi Arabia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, and Kazakhstan.
4. Squares.kz — Hourly Marketplace for Unique Spaces
Founder: Almas Tuyakbayev • Location: Almaty, Astana
Squares.kz is Kazakhstan’s marketplace for flexible hourly property rentals for creative projects, photo sessions, film and podcast shoots, masterclasses, and private events. The platform monetizes idle commercial and private real estate (ranging from scenic penthouses and rooftops to lofts and studios).
Platform Highlights:
- Verified directory: Over a thousand verified locations with genuine imagery, lighting equipment specifications, and clear booking rules.
- Secure transactions: Escrow deposits, damage insurance safeguards, and transparent cancellation terms.
5. Connected Home (Wallee) — Hardware IoT for New Developments
Founders: Yerbol Amanbayev, Dias Kabdushev • Hub: Astana Hub • Model: B2B/B2B2C
Connected Home develops the domestic Wallee IoT controller and a smart residential complex ecosystem. The company has secured direct supply agreements with Kazakhstan’s largest real estate developers, embedding leak-prevention sensors (automated pipe shutoffs), smart thermostats, climate management, and IP intercoms during initial building construction.
Comparative Project Analysis: Technologies, Scale, and Business Models
| Project | Market Segment | Core Technology | Founders | Scaling Focus | In Startup Radar |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ApartX | Short-Term Rentals / IoT | Smart Locks, Dynamic PIN, OTA API | Kanat Keldibekov | Central Asia, Caucasus | Verified (ID: 5425) |
| Porte | Hotels / Hospitality SaaS | Bluetooth Keys, Retrofit Locks, Concierge | Aidana Aituarova | Middle East (MENA), CIS | Verified (ID: 7283) |
| Parqour | Smart Parking / AI Vision | ANPR Neural Networks, Cloud Billing | Amirkhan Omarov | USA, UAE, Europe (20+ Countries) | Verified (ID: 5244) |
| Squares.kz | Hourly Space Sharing | Marketplace, Online Reservations | Almas Tuyakbayev | Almaty, Astana, Kazakhstan Cities | Verified (ID: 5538) |
| Connected Home | Smart Buildings & Real Estate | Wallee Controllers, IoT Sensors | Y. Amanbayev, D. Kabdushev | Mass-Market Developers in KZ | Astana Hub Ecosystem |
Three Major Trends Defining the Future of PropTech in the Region
- Retrofit technologies over complete infrastructure overhauls: As demonstrated by startup Porte, property developers and hotel operators are unwilling to write off equipment worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Software products that sit on top of legacy protocols (VingCard, Dormakaba) and turn analog locks into digital ones will emerge victorious.
- The era of zero-friction mobility (Zero-Friction Access): The footprint of Parqour and ApartX creates a new baseline expectation for end consumers: no reaching into wallets, waiting for operators, or taking plastic keycards. License plates, fingerprints, or smartphone Bluetooth beacons serve as the universal identity token.
- Integration with urban civic ecosystems: Smart barriers and intercoms are beginning to interface directly with urban municipal emergency services (112, 103, fire response units), allowing seamless, automated access into secured courtyards for ambulances and emergency response teams.
Executive Summary for Investors and Developers
Kazakhstan’s PropTech has proven its global viability: ventures like Parqour secure funding in Silicon Valley, while Porte triumphs in Saudi Arabia. For developers and hoteliers, deploying domestic platforms is not just a digital trend, but a direct lever to cut operating expenses (OPEX) by 25–40% and boost asset value per square meter.
