Leading conversational AI provider boost.ai today announced Credit Union of Colorado and Desert Financial Credit Union (DFCU) as new customers alongside a new strategic partnership with Pindrop, industry leaders in voice security solutions.
The news reinforces the company's continued growth in the US market, following its recent launch of new GenAI-enabled virtual agents and the opening of an office in Boston—solidifying the Norway-based developer as a leading provider of conversational and generative AI technology for enterprises operating at scale across the globe.
With these recent client wins and expanded presence in Boston, boost.ai further cements itself as a major conversational AI player in the US market. The Northeast location will support the company's expansive network of US-based customers and partnerships, including Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, Fort Community Credit Union, and CallMiner, while serving as a hub for incoming new business. Boston will also be the new headquarters for executives across several major US business segments, including sales, customer success, and marketing. Philip Hallehn, VP of Customer Success, will head the new Milk Street office.
"The initial hype and fascination around AI hasn't subsided but instead shifted. Today, business leaders across sectors are focused on practical applications of the technology, generating demand everywhere for solutions that deliver material and measurable results," said Jerry Haywood, CEO of boost.ai. "Our intense focus on responsible AI and our intentional approach to risk management and customer safety by way of platform architecture is truly unique. We're inviting more US customers to join us at our new home in Boston to peer under the hood, and see how the technology is driving the success we've seen in even highly regulated industries."
In 2023, Desert Financial Credit Union (DFCU) came on as a joint customer of boost.ai and Pindrop to offload high-volume call loads from its contract center to an IVR-capable virtual agent. For DFCU, like every credit union, fraud protection is paramount. By integrating Pindrop's Deep Voice™ biometric engine, boost.ai's IVR software passively authenticates callers within 3-5 seconds without requiring them to answer a litany of security questions, delivering a more secure and seamless experience. In the first week of operation, the virtual agent, "Dee," saved the call center 42 hours of agent handle time. Today, Dee handles the workload of three full-time employees.
"To both our members and employees, Dee is truly another member of the team," said Laura Wallace, Senior Vice President and Chief Engagement Officer for DFCU. "We've worked hard to bring her to life, not as "a chatbot," but as a fellow employee who provides friendly and efficient support to our members. She allows our live agents to have more capacity to focus on building relationships and solving complex situations with members rather than spending time on easy transactions. And Dee is just getting started. We plan to continue expanding her presence in our phone channel while also introducing her in our chat channel and our internal employee knowledge base."
When Credit Union of Colorado (CUofCO) was in search of a new provider for conversational AI, two key factors were paramount; an exceptional member experience and seamless integration with their banking solutions. Additionally, they sought a partner with a proven track record in agile solutions, capable of meeting their evolving needs as the organization expands. In the fall of 2023, CUofCO deployed a customer-facing FAQ virtual agent within 2 months to cater to their membership base of over 160,000. Having achieved its initial objectives, the credit union now has its sights set on incorporating authenticated intents and an employee-facing virtual agent by the year's end.
"As AI rapidly evolves across all industries, it's no longer feasible for businesses to endure long-drawn or multi-year implementations. Delivering a functional technology that can be continually improved is now fundamental to enhancing member experiences," said Kelly Wagner, the Director of Member Experience, Innovation, and Digital Services at Credit Union of Colorado. "The authenticity of the people and technology at Boost.AI has been instrumental to the success of our partnership. We've observed a significant uptick in positive member satisfaction with the virtual agent, which has further fueled our drive to continue iterating and maximizing the technical capabilities that boost.AI provides."