“Artificial intelligence” is quite the buzzword these days, and while it sounds like something out of science fiction or a far-off possibility, it is already a reality — both for consumers and businesses.

So, what is it?

According to TechEmergence, a research firm studying the effects of AI on business, “Artificial intelligence is an entity (or collective set of cooperative entities), able to receive inputs from the environment, interpret and learn from such inputs, and exhibit related and flexible behaviors and actions that help the entity achieve a particular goal or objective over a period of time.”

Put more simply, AI is the ability of machines to think and learn like humans do.

While the amount of conversation surrounding AI might lead you to believe it’s a new concept, it’s not. The term was first introduced by math professor John McCarthy back in 1956, and interest in the technology has spiked and waned (and spiked again) in the years since.

As consumers, AI is already a part of our everyday lives — for example, Google Maps, Netflix, smartphones, and virtual assistants like Alexa and Siri use AI. And as the technology advances, the number of companies leveraging it to save time and money increases — even in the mortgage industry.

Ellie Mae is working with AI to learn how a consumer wants to be communicated with and how often. Digital Risk is using it to read structured and unstructured data to pinpoint red flags for lenders. Lender Mr. Cooper, Black Knight, and Bank of America are also investing in the technology.

Digital Risk’s senior vice president of marketing and client relations Kimberly Lanham says it won’t be long before consumers are using AI technology to apply for a mortgage, so the industry needs to be several steps ahead.

This means that soon your clients may be asking, “Hey Alexa, am I getting the best rate on my loan?”

Will you be ready?

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