How eXp Realty Unlocked Enterprise Innovation and Cut SaaS Costs with Supabase

The thing that makes everything possible, all of our rapid development now and AI-generated or assisted development, is Supabase. That's the giant whose shoulders we can stand on.

eXp Realty is the world's largest single real estate brokerage, with more than 83,000 agents operating across 29 countries. The company exists to provide real estate professionals with the best possible platform to run their businesses.

This year, eXp embarked on one of the most ambitious internal innovation programs in its history. The goal: empower as many of their 2,000+ non-technical employees as possible to build production software using AI coding tools. Supabase became the foundation that made this transformation possible.

The challenge: legacy systems and locked-in vendors#

eXp's technology stack had grown organically over the years, resulting in a disparate environment of low-code platforms and legacy custom applications.

The primary friction points were:

• Vendor Lock-In: The company was bound by expensive SaaS contracts for core business functions, particularly in their international division spanning 20+ countries.
• Scalability vs. Speed: eXp needed to prototype rapidly without sacrificing the security and stability required for a public company serving a massive global agent base.
• The AI Gap: When AI coding tools matured in 2025, eXp saw an opportunity, but the team needed a backend that could provide security guardrails for non-technical builders and deliver audit-ready compliance immediately.

Supabase as the foundation for AI#

eXp's move to Supabase wasn't just about a database; it was about enabling a new way of working.

By eliminating the need to think about so much of the backend, by having a managed database, an authentication layer, and Serverless Edge Functions, Supabase has sped along what we can deliver... to an extent that really unlocks it as a core competency.

The Supabase MCP server became the critical bridge between non-technical "vibe coders" and experienced engineers. Developers now use the MCP inside tools like Cursor and Claude Code to connect AI assistants directly to Supabase. When debugging, they describe a bug in plain language. The AI uses Supabase MCP tools to query the database, identify the problem, and propose a fix automatically.

Seeing these tools use the Supabase MCP has been the true unlock. It's just magic.

From C-suite to frontline#

The most dramatic proof of Supabase's power came from Glenn Sanford, eXp's Founder and CEO. Glenn personally built "The Hub," a unified community platform featuring real-time messaging, video streaming, and global permissions.

Using Supabase Auth, Database, Edge Functions, and Realtime, he built a bespoke solution that replaced multiple fragmented SaaS products.

I've always believed that if the tool doesn't exist, you build it. Supabase gave us the agility to bypass the limitations of off-the-shelf software and build a bespoke community platform that fits our unique culture. It's not just about saving money; it's about owning our infrastructure and moving at the speed of our agents.

That saves us millions of dollars in SaaS contracts, plus gives us something perfectly tailored for a company like ours.

Democratizing development#

At AI Jam Camp, eXp proved that innovation isn't limited to engineers. Real estate agents with no technical background used Lovable and Supabase to build production-ready software. One participant built a fully functional lead distribution system in hours.

She literally teared up. She never thought she'd be able to do anything like this.

Today, hundreds of non-technical employees build daily. They deploy to Supabase, where core engineering reviews security policies (RLS) and schemas—creating a secure partnership between innovation and engineering.

The new calculus of build versus buy#

The success with Supabase has fundamentally changed how eXp evaluates technology. The default is no longer "buy a SaaS product"; it is "build it better with Supabase."

If you tried vibe coding before and it did not work, try again. You've got to be diving into vibe coding. And you shouldn't be doing it without Supabase.