UBS is a multinational financial service company from Switzerland. They are exploring different technologies for helping clients and client advisors find solutions on the spot. The client advisors in Wealth Management Switzerland participate in a trial project “UBS Companion” featuring two avatars: “Fin”, a digital assistant that facilitates simple transactions, and more impressively, “Daniel Kalt”, a digital replica of the Regional Chief Investment Officer Switzerland. In this way, “Daniel Kalt” appears to be able to help without the actual person being available. The avatars can interact with clients and their advisors through voice and even eye contact via a TV screen in client meetings. “He” can smile and adapt clothes to match the client’s. The avatar answers questions about markets and investment in German and English. The goal of the project is to create a friendly access to expertise and to test the adoption of digital assistants the wealth management. The technology is supported by cognitive solutions from IBM and avatar technology from FaceMe.
Link: article
Location: Switzerland
Purpose
To provide more personable interface for customers
Idea
Have a conversational avatar that is a digital clone of a real person
Further Possibilities
1. Turn mobile apps into conversational avatars
2. Turn Siri into an avatar
3. Each political candidate has an avatar to answer questions
4. Use avatar for counseling or consulting
5. Build an avatar of a real person with alternative personality or background
Questions
1. What might be all the ways to facilitate customized personable interaction?
2. How to improve the emotional intelligence of an avatar?
3. How to pass the Turing test for avatar?
