JemRock Organization Unveils BUILT Platform: AI-Powered Robotics System Built to Tackle the Global 155 Million Unit Housing Deficit

NEW YORK, Aug. 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- JemRock Organization LLC today announced the launch of its BUILT platform, an AI-powered, robotic-driven housing manufacturing system designed to deliver industrial-scale production at a cost and speed conventional construction cannot match.

Founded by Brooklyn entrepreneur Stephen S. Jemal, the Brooklyn entrepreneur who turned a single Fulton Street electronics store into Nobody Beats the Wiz and $2.5 billion in annual retail sales, the company is deploying the platform to confront a global housing deficit of 155 million units that decades of traditional building methods have failed to close.

JemRock Organization LLC's BUILT platform is an AI-powered, robotic-driven housing manufacturing system. A primary US factory produces the robotics. Those systems deploy to regional factories in target markets worldwide. Housing gets produced locally, at industrial speed, at a cost structure conventional construction cannot match.

The research that shaped BUILT, drawn from UN-Habitat, the World Bank, national housing ministries across 28 countries, the OECD, and academic literature spanning 2022 through 2025, maps the global housing deficit at 155 million units today and 240 million by 2030. Seven structural forces are accelerating it. No existing technology is scaled to stop it.

The Problem, By the Numbers

2.8 billion people lack adequate housing globally. 300 million are absolutely homeless. 1.12 billion live in slums. 1.6 billion are affordability-stressed. 40% of the global urban population lives in informal settlements. The world needs 96,000 new homes built every single day to begin closing the gap. The current pace produces about 60 million units per decade. The required pace is 90 million. The shortfall is 30 million units per decade and the financing gap to close it stands at $16 trillion.

Seven forces ensure it gets worse before it gets better. Urban populations in developing nations are growing at 4% annually. Population growth adds 80 million new people needing housing every year. Climate migration will displace an estimated 200 million people by 2050.

Construction material and labor costs are up 45% since 2020. Zoning laws and regulatory barriers actively suppress supply in the highest-demand markets. The global affordable housing financing shortfall is $16 trillion. And decades of deferred infrastructure investment have left no buffer.

Traditional construction, the research concludes, cannot meet this demand. Innovation is not a preference. It is a requirement.

Where the Deficit Sits

Asia-Pacific carries the heaviest burden at 62.5 million units. Africa follows at 52 million, with Sub-Saharan Africa accounting for 67% of that figure. Urbanization across the continent is running at 4% annual growth and informal settlements house 55% of the urban population. South America accounts for 13 million units. North America 12.5 million. Europe 9.5 million. MENA 5.4 million.

At the city level the picture sharpens considerably. Mumbai carries a 5.8 million unit deficit. Delhi 4.2 million. Lagos 3.9 million. São Paulo 2.7 million. Dhaka 2.5 million. Jakarta 2.3 million. These are the crisis epicenters where any meaningful response has to function.

In the United States the deficit concentrates in gateway cities: Los Angeles at 520,000 units, San Francisco Bay Area at 450,000, New York Metro at 380,000. Median home prices running 8 to 12 times median income, restrictive zoning, and NIMBYism blocking new supply are the primary drivers in the domestic market.

India's 31 million unit deficit breaks down by city tier: 8 million in Tier 1 cities, 12 million in Tier 2, 7 million in Tier 3, and 4 million in rural areas. Nigeria carries a 31.5 million unit shortfall driving a $380 billion regional housing finance gap. These numbers do not self-correct through incremental improvement.

The Segment Reality

Of the 155 million unit global deficit, 137 million units — 88% — fall into the affordable housing category. Low-income families below 60% of area median income, essential workers, recent immigrants and refugees, and rural communities represent the target population. Government subsidies, LIHTC tax credit programs, and public-private partnerships provide the financing framework. Demand is stable, long-term, and government-backed across every major geography.

The remaining 12% splits across social housing at 5%, workforce housing at 3%, student housing at 2%, and middle-income homeownership gap housing at 1%. The market is overwhelmingly concentrated in a single segment that requires cost-efficient, scalable construction above everything else.

The Technology

BUILT uses AI-powered robotics manufactured in a primary US facility and deployed to regional factories in target markets. The model eliminates the logistics overhead of shipping finished housing modules by producing locally from local materials. Construction timelines run more than 50% faster than conventional methods. Cost savings reach up to 50% through automation, reduced labor dependency, and material optimization. Factory-controlled precision delivers millimeter-level accuracy. Localized production cuts transportation costs and emissions simultaneously.

The US manufacturing policy environment strengthens the economics. CHIPS and Science Act funding for advanced manufacturing technology, Section 48D manufacturing tax credits up to 25%, MACRS accelerated depreciation for robotics equipment, reshoring incentives, and alignment with federal Industry 4.0 priorities all support domestic production. The distributed regional hub model maximizes state-level incentive capture across deployment markets.

From US innovation to global implementation, as JemRock describes it, the model ships AI-powered robotics machinery globally, deploys to regional factories in target markets, anchors manufacturing capability locally, creates jobs and economic opportunity, and enables affordable housing production while reducing material costs through efficiency. The systematic impact eliminates logistical complexity, delivers sustainable long-term housing infrastructure, and scales to any deployment target.

About Stephen S. Jemal

Stephen S. Jemal is a Brooklyn-born entrepreneur and the founder of Nobody Beats the Wiz, the consumer electronics chain that grew from a single Fulton Street storefront to 110 locations across six states, ranked 13th among America's most recognized retail brands, and generated annual sales exceeding $2.5 billion before its sale to Cablevision in 1998. He subsequently founded JemRock Organization LLC, a New York-based real estate development and construction innovation company and employed 6,000 people. Jemal serves as Founder, President, and CEO of JemRock alongside his sons Norman, Solomon, Richard, and James.

Media Contact Information

Stephen S. Jemal

ssj@jemrockorg.com

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