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Pypestream

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Pypestream
IndustryEnterprise Artificial Intelligence
Founded2015; 9 years ago (2015) in New York City
FounderRichard Smullen
Websitepypestream.com Edit this on Wikidata

Pypestream is an American software company that offers a self-service automation platform.[1] The company was founded in 2015 by Richard Smullen, the co-founder of Genesis Media LLC,[2][3][4] and is headquartered in New York City.

Technology

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The Pypestream platform drives an engagement interface called a Pype that uses conversational AI within a graphical user interface. It gained popularity due to the high cost of assisted-service engagements versus the minuscule cost of self-service engagements, coupled with the brand-enhancing experience delivered by a Pype.[5][6] It is used for customer service, employee service, recruiting, patient service, traveler service, marketing, and other automated engagement use cases. Pypestream couples AI-driven natural-language understanding (NLU) with a widget-based GUI that encourages pointing, swiping and gestures.[3][7]

History

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In late December 2015, Pypestream's mobile application launched in beta.[3][7]

By April 2016, the company had 500 businesses signed up and using the messaging platform, including Washington Gas and Billboard.[3][8] The same year, the company was named in the Red Herring list of 100 most exciting startups in North America[9] and announced a partnership with Discovery Health, the largest medical scheme administrator in South Africa, in order to include the Pypestream technology in the app for members of Discovery Health Medical Scheme.[10] In July 2016, Pypestream partnered with Insurance Thought Leadership to create a messaging platform specialized for insurance customer service. As of 2016, there were over 12,000 businesses using Pypestream since its launch in December 2015.[11]

In February, 2017, Pypestream raised $15 million in funding from Rick Braddock and The Chattergee Group.[12]

In 2018, Pypestream was named one of the four Hot Vendors in Conversational AI by Aragon Research.[13] Its current clients include Allianz, EY, Google, Sling, Brown & Brown, and Shell.[14][1][15] The company has been granted five patents by the U.S. Patent Office[16] and secured $15 million in funding by W.R. Berkley, bringing their total up to $35 million.[1][17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Pypestream raises $15 million for conversational enterprise AI". VentureBeat. 2018-12-13. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  2. ^ Anthony Ha (October 7, 2015). "Pypestream Raises $2M To Help Businesses Talk To Their Customers". Tech Crunch. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Sara Ashley O'Brien (January 12, 2016). "Is this app the call center of the future?". CNN. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  4. ^ "Pypestream Closes $2M Seed Funding". Finsmes. October 9, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  5. ^ Anthony Ha (November 11, 2015). "Pypestream Offers Consumers A New Way To Chat With Businesses". Tech Crunch. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  6. ^ Christopher Mohr (January 26, 2016). "Customer-Friendly Pypestream System Slashes Labor Costs". Omnichannel Experience. Retrieved May 17, 2016.[permanent dead link]
  7. ^ a b João-Pierre S. Ruth (February 22, 2016). "Pypestream's CEO Talks Messaging Between Businesses and Consumers". Xconomy. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  8. ^ Lisa Johnston (January 25, 2016). "RIP Hold Times: Pypestream Bringing Customer Service Into The Digital Age". Twice. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  9. ^ "Red Herring Crowns Top 100 North American Winners". Red Herring. June 14, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  10. ^ "Innovative customer service solution for South African medical scheme members". Discovery Holdings. June 7, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  11. ^ Khari Johnson (July 29, 2016). "Chat startup Pypestream to advise major insurance companies". VentureBeat. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  12. ^ Anthony Ha (February 28, 2017). "Pypestream raises $15M for its customer messaging platform". Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  13. ^ "Hot Vendors™ in Conversational AI, 2018". Aragon Research. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  14. ^ "Conversational AI Outfit Pypestream Raises $15M+". callcenterinfo.tmcnet.com. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  15. ^ "Sling TV Partners with Pypestream to Make Customer Service Capabilities Easily Accessible". loyalty360.org. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  16. ^ "Patents Assigned to Pypestream Inc. - Justia Patents Search". patents.justia.com. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  17. ^ "Conversational A.I. Start-Up Pypestream Brings in $15 Million". Cheddar. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
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