NCR Atleos Corporation (“Atleos”), a leader in expanding self-service financial access for financial institutions, retailers and consumers, has collaborated with Kuwait Finance House (KFH) to transform the in-branch customer experience through the deployment of a hyper-realistic conversational AI-powered avatar.
This groundbreaking initiative introduces AI-driven video avatars at account service kiosks across KFH branches, offering customers real-time, personalized assistance. These avatars are designed to answer frequently asked questions about KFH services, provide branch-specific information, and—beginning in the second phase of the collaboration—guide users through transactions directly on the kiosk. When needed, the avatar can seamlessly escalate the interaction to a live agent, ensuring uninterrupted, high-quality support.
“Our collaboration with Atleos marks a significant milestone in the evolution of banking,” said Meshal Mandani, Executive Manager Digital Channels at KFH. “By integrating conversational AI into the branch environment, we’re enabling a more intuitive, accessible, and customer-centric experience that aligns with the demands of modern-day life.”
Mr. Mandani further stated that KFH is advancing its digital transformation strategy, reinforcing its leadership in AI adoption to deliver an exceptional customer experience. KFH has named its avatar “Fahad,” Kuwait’s first AI-powered virtual employee. Additionally, KFH will collaborate with Atleos to implement AI-driven speech analytics and an automated quality management system, enabling precise insights into customer interactions by evaluating keywords, categorizing topics, and analyzing the sentiment and tone of customer communications. This underscores that KFH is moving forward in leading Kuwait’s banking sector in digital transformation and AI innovation, setting new standards for customer experience.
“This initiative reflects the commitment of KFH to digital transformation and customer-first innovation, positioning the bank at the forefront of AI adoption in the financial services industry,” said Samer Zeyadeh, Middle East Sales Leader at Atleos. “We look forward to working closely with KFH as they empower customers to access financial services with conversational avatars.”
The avatars leverage advanced natural language processing and AI technologies to deliver human-like interactions, effectively blurring the boundaries between traditional branch services and digital engagement.
“While this solution is not yet available as a commercial product, our field test with Kuwait Finance House demonstrates the potential of conversational AI to transform customer engagement,” said Sean Mallean, Head of Global Innovation at NCR Atleos. “The Innovation Lab at NCR Atleos continues to advance this technology, reinforcing our commitment to enhanced customer experience through frictionless, inclusive interaction.”
Key benefits of the solution include:
- Operational Efficiency: Enables leaner, more innovative branch formats with significant cost savings.
- Enhanced Customer Experience: Delivers personalized, conversational support that adapts to individual needs.
- Scalable Support: Frees up human agents to focus on complex inquiries while AI handles routine tasks.
