NEW YORK, May 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- LivePerson, a
leading provider of cloud mobile and online business messaging solutions, has rolled out the first financial industry "hybrid
bots" in the world, at the Royal Bank of Scotland, where humans and bots team up in one
conversation to offer fast and accurate service. The service, currently live for customers of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) brand, with plans for a wider rollout, supports the bank's mission to be the UK's most
helpful bank, centered around the customer.
Unlike typical bots to date, which work in isolation from other channels, the RBS approach gives users a single, convenient
place to get help, RBS Assist. Combining AI (artificial intelligence)-powered FAQs and bot conversations, RBS Assist is also able
to quickly transfer a bot conversation to a human customer service representative if it cannot understand what a consumer wants.
This addresses the frustration of chats where the bot cannot help a consumer, who then has to call in to a support line, or go
elsewhere for help.
As an open platform, LiveEngage serves as the foundation for RBS's digital communications, and integrates additional
technology, including cloud-based AI, and advanced self-service software from Nanorep, to intelligently answer or surface answers
to FAQs. With this combined system, millions of RBS customers will in future benefit from the ability to message RBS customer
service from their smartphone or computer, and get fast answers powered by AI.
LivePerson's hybrid bot technology works by handing off conversations, back and forth, between human agents and bots This
allows the RBS bots to handle routine, administrative tasks, while the bank's human agents take on the more complex, meaningful
interactions and ensure that customers are being understood correctly.
The RBS bot works out what the customer is asking and guides them through simple processes, handing off to a human where it is
having trouble. For instance, the bot might suggest answers to FAQs or offer relevant links to common questions. Where a question
is more complicated, there is a seamless transfer from a bot to a human agent, which speeds up the customer experience and gives
time back to RBS customers.
Founder and CEO of LivePerson, Robert LoCascio, says, "Good customer service should strike the
right balance between automation and human interaction. For now, bots aren't ready to be the primary "agent" but they're very
effective at routine, simple tasks. We believe a combination of humans and bots, with seamless handoffs, is needed for great
customer service and it is exciting to work with RBS and see these hybrid bots out in the world."
The head of digital service at RBS, Katie Ayaz, says, "We're pleased to be a leader in
deploying AI and messaging technologies to serve our customers consistently and with high quality. Intelligent customer
engagement using LivePerson technology has already helped us to reduce operational costs and drive higher net promoter scores. As
we strive to become the UK's no.1 bank for customer service, the introduction of hybrid bot customer service to RBS Assist is an
exciting next step."
The enhanced solution, which started live testing in January, includes natural language processing (NLP) techniques with
machine learning (ML) algorithms. This enables RBS to analyse every single line of text that its customers enter during a
conversation. Bot conversations will be rated in real time as positive, negative or neutral, which will help RBS determine when
human intervention or support is needed.
Complementing the hybrid bot solution is Nanorep's self-service software. Nanorep's solution improves the digital customer
experience by deploying an intelligent search function that leverages AI to understand questions based on context, and yield
answers in a matter of seconds. This functionality will enable the RBS customer care agents, bot or human, to more efficiently
connect with customers in real time.
LivePerson began working with RBS in 2006 and has since enabled the bank to develop a fully digital, device-agnostic support
channel for customers.
Continues LoCascio: "Technology is enabling greater convenience in everything we do, and, as consumer communication
preferences evolve, so must businesses. We have the privilege of working with some of the most innovative companies in the world
on their digital customer care initiatives. RBS has been one of the earliest to recognise the power and potential of mobile
messaging between consumers and brands."
About LivePerson
LivePerson, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPSN) is the leading provider of mobile and online messaging business solutions,
enabling a meaningful connection between brands and consumers. LiveEngage, the Company's enterprise-class, cloud-based platform,
empowers consumers to stop wasting time on hold with 1-800 numbers, and instead message their favourite brands, just as they do
with friends and family. More than 18,000 businesses, including Adobe, Citibank, HSBC, EE, IBM, L'Oreal, PNC, and The Home Depot,
rely on the unparalleled intelligence, security, and scalability of LiveEngage to reduce costs, increase lifetime value, and
create meaningful connection with consumers. For more information, please visit www.liveperson.com. To view other global press releases about LivePerson, please
visit pr.liveperson.com.
Media Contact
Rurik Bradbury
rbradbury@liveperson.com
646-298-8272
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obligation to inform you if they do. Actual events or results may differ materially from those contained in the projections or
forward-looking statements. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements contained herein include, without limitation: potential fluctuations in our quarterly revenue and
operating results; the adverse effect that the global economic downturn may have on our business and results of operations;
competition in the markets for online sales, marketing and customer service solutions, and online consumer services; our ability
to retain existing clients and attract new clients; risks related to new regulatory or other legal requirements that could
materially impact our business; impairments to goodwill that result in significant charges to earnings; volatility of the value
of certain currencies in relation to the US dollar, particularly the currency of regions where we have operations; additional
regulatory requirements, tax liabilities, currency exchange rate fluctuations and other risks as we expand internationally;
responding to rapid technological change and changing client preferences; our ability to retain key personnel and attract new
personnel; our ability to expand our operations internationally; risks related to the ability to successfully integrate past or
potential future acquisitions; risks related to the regulation or possible misappropriation of personal information belonging to
our customers' Internet users; technology systems beyond our control and technology-related defects that could disrupt the
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perception; legal liability and/or negative publicity for the services provided to consumers via our technology platforms; risks
related to protecting our intellectual property rights or potential infringement of the intellectual property rights of third
parties; increased allowances for doubtful accounts as a result of an increasing amount of receivables due from customers with
greater credit risk; delays in our implementation cycles; risks associated with our current or future stock repurchase programs,
including whether such programs will enhance long-term stockholder value, and whether such stock repurchases could increase the
volatility of the price of our common stock and diminish our cash reserves; risks related to our operations in Israel, and the civil and political unrest in that region; and risks related to our common stock being
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This list is intended to identify only certain of the principal factors that could cause actual results to differ from those
discussed in the forward-looking statements. Readers are referred to the reports and documents filed from time to time by us with
the Securities and Exchange Commission for a discussion of these and other important risk factors that could cause actual results
to differ from those discussed in forward-looking statements.
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SOURCE LivePerson, Inc.