Nikki, Lysanne en Joao

At NN we believe that innovation comes from doing – by testing new technologies, working together and being bold. That's exactly how Nikki, Lysanne and Joao contributed to GAIA: a platform that combines the power of generative AI with NN's in-house knowledge. From customer service to HR and administration, more and more teams are discovering how GAIA makes their work easier.  

An in-house AI chatbot based on NN data ... how did this adventure begin? 
“It all started with the ChatGPT hype,” explains data scientist Nikki. “Suddenly everyone saw the power of generative AI. But although a model like ChatGPT can do a lot, it doesn't have access to our own company information. So the question arose: can we build a large language model in which employees can work with our own data? When a number of teams became enthusiastic, the idea arose to make it an NN-wide platform which we could tailor specifically for each team. Lysanne's team was the first to start using GAIA.” 

“That's right,” adds Lysanne. “GAIA helps the Customer Service teams find the right information quickly and accurately, without having to search endlessly or ask colleagues for help. The teams previously focused on just one NN product or label. After all, our brains are not infinitely large – we cannot remember everything about every specialism within NN. Thanks to GAIA, customer service staff can now work in multiple teams. Plus it also helps us onboard new colleagues.” 

What makes GAIA so special? 
“In technical terms we are really exploring the next generation of smart search technology here,” explains machine learning engineer Joao. “What Google used to do, big language models are doing now. GAIA combines that power with the knowledge within NN.” 

Nikki says: “Precisely! Furthermore, GAIA is not a stand-alone tool, but a kind of self-service platform. Teams can add their own knowledge and build their own chatbot. That makes it hugely scalable. We are now seeing that it works not only in customer contact, but also in HR and administrative teams, for example. We even have a shared version for all employees within NN, so you can also find answers to questions like: how do I reset my password?” 

Lysanne says: “And it is far from finished. But that is also its strength: we launch quickly, learn from feedback and improve continuously.” 

An AI platform that brings real change. How are you seeing that happen? 
“You can see people changing the way they work,” says Lysanne. “Take Customer Service: conversations with customers are faster, the waiting time is shorter and employees feel more confident because they can check their answers immediately.” 

“That's right,” says Nikki. “But so far we have mostly talked about AI as support, with the human still in the loop. The next step is AI that can answer customer queries independently. Joao is currently working on that with a new project: AI Reply.” 

Joao says: “Yes, with GAIA we have laid a foundation on which we can build further. Now we are exploring how to use AI to handle customer queries directly. GAIA provides the springboard for even more change within NN. This is just the beginning.” 

Lysanne says: “It's so inspiring to talk about this!” 

Nikki says: “Haha, it really is! Big things are coming!” 

Sounds cool! You are true supporters of change, as NN calls its employees. How is the organisation supporting you to enable change? 
“For me personally, NN has been a real gamechanger,” says Joao. “I came to the Netherlands from Brazil partly thanks to NN's support. I was always interested in AI, but initially I worked here as a full stack developer. NN not only gave me the opportunity to make that move abroad, but also to get trained in AI and eventually join the AI team. That is really enabling change!”