Recognizing that artificial intelligence will be playing an increasingly prominent role in delivering an automated, all-digital online mortgage process, mortgage software, data and analytics firm Black Knight has acquired HeavyWater, an AI and machine learning solution.
Terms of the deal were not divulged.
HeavyWater’s AIVA (pronounced Ay-vah) solution is able to read, comprehend and draw conclusions based on context to mimic cognitive thinking and build expertise over time. Not only does this hold great promise for further automating interactions between borrowers and lenders, it will also potentially improve the efficiency of lenders’ back-office operations and help them reduce risk.
Black Knight says it will be integrating AIVA into its premier solutions, while also making the technology available to clients who seek to deploy AI/ML within other parts of their organizations to help enhance efficiency, effectiveness and accuracy.
HeavyWater has been providing this solution to help lenders verify income, assets and insurance coverage, which are traditionally manual activities that take hours to complete and are prone to error. Clients benefit from accelerated processes and reduced expenses as AIVA gains experience and manual routines are automated, Black Knight says in a release.
“With the cost of origination and servicing at, or near, all-time highs, AIVA is poised to help increase efficiencies for Black Knight clients,” says Anthony Jabbour, CEO for Black Knight. “AI, machine learning and neural network solutions are the future of delivering enhanced productivity and capabilities to our clients, and we are very excited about the potential HeavyWater has to offer. Now, with HeavyWater a part of Black Knight, we’ll be able to apply this groundbreaking technology at scale and pursue our shared goal of transforming the industry.”
“Our focus has always been on pioneering research in machine learning and artificial intelligence and applying it to the financial services industry,” adds Soofi Safavi, CEO of HeavyWater. “By using sophisticated neural networks and ‘contextual knowledge’ to continuously improve AIVA’s learning and performance, we’ve helped our clients save money, increase efficiencies and reduce turn time.”