Black Knight announced Monday its acquisition of HeavyWater, a provider of artificial intelligence and machine learning to the financial services industry.
Black Knight explained it plans on integrating HeavyWater’s AIVA solution, which leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to perform operational functions more efficiently than traditional methods, into its premier solutions. It will also make the technology available to its clients looking to utilize AI within other parts of their organizations.
“With the cost of origination and servicing at, or near, all-time highs, AIVA is poised to help increase efficiencies for Black Knight clients,” Black Knight CEO Anthony Jabbour said. “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,” Jabbour said.
AIVA reads, comprehends and draws conclusions based on context to mimic cognitive thinking and even builds expertise over time. It can perform task such as help lenders verify income, assets and insurance coverage, which typically take several hours to complete manually.
“Our focus has always been on pioneering research in machine learning and artificial intelligence and applying it to the financial services industry,” HeavyWater CEO Soofi Safavi said. “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.”
AI has recently been growing its presence in the mortgage industry. Earlier this month, Bank of America announced its customers can now use AI to pay their mortgage. Also, Mr. Cooper announced its new AI-driven mobile app for homeowners.
In fact, as more and more companies turn to the use of AI and machine learning, HousingWire’s Editor-In-Chief Jacob Gaffney dedicated a feature story in the June issue of HW magazine to AI, technology and the rise of the robots [subscription required.]
One expert, Tavant Technologies’ Atul Varshneya, even sat down recently with HW Content Solutions Managing Editor Sarah Wheeler to talk about the industry’s advancements in AI, the changes it could soon bring to lenders and what the next steps are to developing AI technologies.