NAB-owned UBank launches robot to sell home loans

In a first for an Australian bank, NAB-owned UBank has launched an artificial intelligence “chatbot” for home loans.

Using IBM Watson’s supercomputer technology, it aims to reduce the time it takes to complete an application for a home loan, by providing real-time answers to questions that is available 24/7.

Called RoboChat, it has been trained using data collected from customer questions and will continue to learn as more customers engage with it, becoming smarter and more user-friendly over time.

Users ask it questions such as “what term do you offer on home loans” and “do you offer redraws and how do they work”, with RoboChat offering on-the-spot help.

A handful of super funds offer robo-advice and there are some online investment platforms that are also using the technology.

With super, it’s mostly limited to life insurance; where the fund member answers a few questions about themselves and the super fund provides an automated response on how much insurance cover the fund member should have.

RoboChat is believed to be the first time an Australian bank has used robo-advice to answer questions about home loans.

IBM Watson is a supercomputer that combines artificial intelligence and analytical software to answer questions in natural languages. Users ask questions, and the supercomputer learns and responds in context – as opposed to providing stock responses.

Lee Hatton, the chief executive of UBank, says the goal is to deliver simpler, better, smarter banking to customers.

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Source: NAB-owned UBank launches robot to sell home loans – Sydney Morning Herald