Ofer Ronen is the Co-Founder and CEO of Tomato.ai, a platform that gives an AI powered voice filter to melt accents for offshore agent voices as they communicate, leading to improved CSAT and gross sales metrics.
Ofer beforehand offered three tech startups, two to Google, and one to IAC. He spent the previous 5 years at Google constructing contact heart AI options inside the Space 120 incubator. He closed over $500M in offers for these new options. He holds an MS in Pc Engineering with a concentrate on AI from the College of Michigan, and an MBA from Cornell.
What initially attracted you to machine studying and AI?
AI has had a protracted historical past of begins and stops. Intervals when there was plenty of hope for the know-how to remodel industries, adopted by durations of disillusionment as a result of it didn’t fairly dwell as much as the hype.
Once I was doing a Masters in AI a few a long time in the past, on the College of Michigan, it was a interval of disillusionment, when AI was not fairly making an influence. I used to be intrigued by the concept computer systems might be taught to carry out duties by way of examples vs the normal heuristics, which requires fascinated about what express directions to offer. On the time I used to be working at an AI analysis lab on digital brokers which assist lecturers discover assets on-line for his or her courses. Again then we didn’t have the massive knowledge, the highly effective compute assets, or the superior neural networks that we now have right this moment, so the capabilities we constructed have been restricted.
From 2016 to 2019 you labored at Google’s Space 120 incubator to design extremely strong digital brokers for the most important contact facilities. What was this resolution exactly?
Extra just lately I labored at Google’s Space 120 incubator on a few of the largest voice digital brokers deployments, together with a few tasks for Fortune 50 firms with over 100 million assist calls a yr.
With a view to construct extra strong voice digital brokers that may deal with advanced conversations, we took thousands and thousands of historic conversations between people and used these conversations to detect the kind of follow-up questions prospects have past their preliminary said challenge. By mining follow-up questions and by mining other ways prospects phrase every query, we have been capable of construct versatile digital brokers that may have meandering conversations. This mirrored higher the sort of conversations prospects have with human brokers. The top consequence was a fabric enhance within the whole calls totally dealt with by the digital brokers.
In 2021 and 2022, you constructed a 2nd startup at Space 120,. may you share what this firm was and what you discovered from the expertise?
My second startup inside Space 120 was once more targeted on name facilities. Our resolution targeted on lowering buyer churn by proactively reaching out to prospects proper after a failed assist name the place the client expressed their challenge however didn’t get to a decision. The outreach can be completed by digital brokers educated to deal with these open points. What I discovered from that have is that churn is a tough metric to measure in a well timed method. It could possibly take 6 months to get statistically important outcomes for adjustments in churn. That makes it arduous to optimize an expertise quick sufficient and to persuade prospects an answer is working.
May you share the genesis story behind your third third contact heart AI startup Tomato.ai, and why you selected to do it your self versus working inside Google?
The thought for Tomato.ai, my third contact heart startup, got here from James Fan, my co-founder and CTO. James thought it could be simpler to promote wine utilizing a French accent, and so what if anybody might be made to sound French?
This was the seed of the thought, and from there our pondering developed. As we investigated it extra we discovered a extra acute ache level felt by prospects when talking with accented offshore brokers. Prospects had issues with comprehension and belief. This represented a bigger market alternative. Given our backgrounds, we realized the sizable influence it could have on name facilities, serving to them enhance their gross sales and assist metrics. We now check with this kind of resolution as Accent Softening.
James and I beforehand led and offered startups, together with every of us promoting a startup to Google.
We determined to go away Google to begin Tomato.ai as a result of, after a few years at Google, we have been itching to get again to beginning and main our personal firm.
Tomato.ai solves an necessary ache level with name facilities, which is softening accents for brokers. May you focus on why voice filters are a most well-liked resolution to agent coaching?
At Tomato.ai, we perceive the significance of clear communication in name facilities, the place accents can generally create obstacles. As an alternative of relying solely on conventional agent coaching, we have developed voice filters, or what we name “accent softening.” These filters assist brokers preserve their distinctive voice, whereas lowering their accents, enhancing readability for callers. By utilizing voice filters, we guarantee higher communication and construct belief between brokers and callers, making each interplay simpler and satisfying to the client. So, in comparison with in depth coaching packages, voice filters supply a less complicated and extra rapid resolution to deal with accent-related challenges in name facilities.
As current brokers leverage these instruments to reinforce their efficiency, they are going to be empowered to command increased charges, reflecting their elevated worth in delivering distinctive buyer experiences. Concurrently, the democratizing impact of generative AI will convey new entry-level brokers into the fold, increasing the expertise pool and driving down hourly charges. This dichotomy signifies a elementary transformation within the dynamics of name heart providers, the place know-how and human experience reshape the panorama of the trade, paving the way in which for a extra inclusive and aggressive future.
What are a few of the totally different machine studying and AI applied sciences which are used to allow voice filtering?
This kind of real-time voice filtering resolution wouldn’t have been doable simply a few years in the past. Developments in speech analysis mixed with newer architectures just like the transformer mannequin and Deep Neural Networks, and extra highly effective AI {hardware} (like TPUs from Google, and GPUs from NVidia) make it extra doable to construct such options right this moment. It’s nonetheless a really tough drawback that requires our staff to invent new strategies for coaching speech-to-speech fashions which are low latency, and prime quality.
What kind of suggestions has been acquired from name facilities, and the way has it impacted worker churn charges?
We have now robust demand from giant and small offshore name facilities to check out our accent softening resolution. These name facilities acknowledge that Tomato.ai might help with their prime two issues (1) offshore brokers’ efficiency metrics are less than par vs onshore brokers (2) it’s tough to search out sufficient certified brokers to rent in offshore markets like India and The Philippines.
We count on within the coming weeks to have case research that spotlight the kind of influence name facilities expertise utilizing Accent Softening. We count on gross sales calls to see an instantaneous raise in key metrics like income, shut charges, and lead qualification charges. On the identical time, we count on assist calls to see shorter deal with instances, fewer callbacks, and improved CSAT.
As talked about above churn charges take longer to validate, and so case research with these enhancements will come at a later date.
Tomato.ai just lately raised a $10 million funding spherical, what does this imply for the way forward for the corporate?
As Tomato.ai gears up for its inaugural product launch, the staff stays steadfast in its dedication to reshaping the panorama of worldwide communication and the way forward for work, one dialog at a time.
Thanks for the good interview, readers who want to be taught extra ought to go to Tomato.ai.
