After exploring a number of options for AI, CodeObjects selected the IBM Watson platform to support its chatbot product, which the company calls InsurBot.ai. The solution features IBM watsonx Assistant, IBM Watson Discovery, IBM Watson Speech to Text, IBM Watson Text to Speech and IBM® Voice Agent with Watson services.
Anthony Peccerillo, Vice President of Product Marketing for CodeObjects, picks up the story: “Our plan for phase one of the product was to target the customer service area and automate repeatable tasks that people are doing on a daily basis.”
Critical first-phase tasks included filing a first notice of loss (FNOL), checking payment or claims status, getting a quote and making a payment. The solution responds to policyholders’ voices, following a predetermined script that was developed after using Watson technology to analyze approximately 50,000 calls received after Hurricane Irma in 2017.
Although the intention was to make the experience as easy and seamless as possible for policyholders, InsurBot.ai was also careful to give callers a sense of control. Bala explains: “In the dialog flow we wrote using IBM watsonx Assistant, there are various nodes where the call could be branched off to a live agent, either because of user request or because of some other internal condition.”
Just as CodeObjects was finishing up the scripts for the first phase of the InsurBot.ai initiative, Hurricane Michael made its first appearance on radar screens. The hurricane was headed for the Florida Panhandle, where many of CodeObjects’ customers had operations. If the models were correct, it would be one of the largest storms to hit the area since 1992. Catastrophic losses were virtually inevitable.
Anticipating a huge influx of P&C claims after the hurricane hit, Security First Insurance, one of CodeObjects’ existing customers, decided to roll out the new AI assistant in advance of the storm. With less than a week’s notice, the InsurBot.ai and Security First Insurance teams got to work on moving from pilot to production. “We went into deployment mode,” says Bala. “It was all hands on deck. We tested it, stabilized it and migrated the production environment from standard to premium Watson plan. It was a short window for a lot of activity, but we met the challenge head on and had a successful outcome.”
Werner Kruck, Chief Operating Officer at Security First Insurance, agrees: "Not only are we able to improve customer satisfaction, the team at InsurBot.ai enabled us to create a technology strategy to further differentiate the experience we offer and lower costs in the long term.”