The chat bot that thinks it can do property management

An app that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to deal with the property management queries that can drain an agent’s resources is going through its paces with 20 property firms including Savills and JLL, The Negotiator can reveal. Called AskPorter, the mobile-phone based app answers the day-to-day questions that property managers get asked using a chat bot. It also uses a digital ticketing system to assign maintenance and emergency queries directly to the relevant professionals such as electricians or plumbers without the need for human intervention. The chat bot is connected to an AI brain that has been taught to understand the different queries and syntax that tenants use, and then use this to work out if they need just information or physical help. For example, if a tenant asks “when is my rent due?” or “can I have pets?”, then AskPorter can answer these questions on the spot. But if a tenant reports a leaking tap or broken lock then they are put in touch with an approved plumber or locksmith immediately via the messaging service, with whom tenants can share pictures of the problem. Co-founded by Tom Shrive and Sam Tassell, AskPorter is being funded by venture capital firm…