Haven, a platform which embeds servicing functions into a lender's brand, will partner with Kastle, the AI startup, the companies announced Tuesday. The collaboration, which the partners say will reduce costs in servicing operations, will go live in the first quarter next year for Haven's customers.

"Our partnership with Kastle is a significant step towards our mission of eliminating complexity from the mortgage experience and providing a comprehensive hub for homeowners," said Jonathan Chao, co-founder and chief product officer of Haven, in a press release. 

Kastle and Haven finished first and second last month at National Mortgage News' Innovation Challenge among a field of 20 industry technology providers. Kastle demonstrated its AI voice agent on a live phone call, and judges then lauded the software's natural-sounding conversation with an AI agent sounding like Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. 

Haven Wallet allows borrowers to pay their mortgage and purchase other home services on a single platform, no matter who owns their mortgage servicing rights. The platform folds services under the original lender's branding, and the partnership will allow a single phone contact for mortgage-related inquiries. 

Haven, founded in 2020, says it has already generated a twofold increase in recapture rate for its mortgage partners. Servicers this summer retained just 20% of homeowners seeking to refinance, and experts have emphasized the competition for a prospective refi wave will be fiercer than yesteryear.

Kastle offers both AI voice and text agents for servicers, along with editable sales scripts. The startup says it can track call intent, where live agents may not always define why consumers called. Co-founders Rishi Choudhary and Nitish Poddar said the platform can manage call volume fluctuations and is available around the clock.

The AI-powered offering next year will be in compliance with real estate regulations and cybersecurity standards, and the firms will encrypt customers' personally identifiable information, they said Tuesday.