Avoca

Avoca operates as a provider of an AI-powered communications platform targeting service-based businesses, with a particular focus on the home services sector, including HVAC, plumbing, and electrical companies. Founded in 2022 by MIT alumni Apurva Shrivastava and Tyson Chen, the company is headquartered in New York City. Both founders have backgrounds rooted in AI and personal experience with small family businesses, which influenced the company's direction. Shrivastava, a second-time founder, has experience at Apple and Retool, while Chen worked on AI projects at BCG and was an early product manager at Nuro, a self-driving delivery company.

The company's core business revolves around automating and enhancing customer interactions to increase booking rates and improve customer service. Avoca offers AI agents that handle customer communications across multiple channels, such as phone calls, texts, and web chats, on a 24/7 basis. The business model appears to be subscription-based, providing these AI services to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to manage inbound and outbound communications. This includes answering customer queries, booking and rescheduling appointments directly into client CRMs like ServiceTitan, and handling follow-ups.

Avoca's product suite consists of two main offerings: "Responder" and "Coach". Responder is the AI agent that handles incoming customer calls, especially after hours or during peak times, ensuring no potential lead is missed. It is designed to have human-like conversational abilities and can handle tasks like collecting customer information and managing appointments. The "Coach" product analyzes calls handled by human customer service representatives (CSRs) to provide feedback and performance insights, effectively training the client's existing staff. The platform also features outbound capabilities, initiating follow-up calls, sending booking confirmations to reduce no-shows, and soliciting reviews. Avoca has secured partnerships with industry players like ServiceTitan and Nexstar. After participating in the Y Combinator W23 batch, the company has raised capital through seed funding rounds to expand its team and invest in research and development.

Keywords: AI call center, home services AI, customer service automation, AI sales agent, lead conversion, appointment booking AI, CSR training, HVAC technology, plumbing software, electrician software, virtual customer service, 24/7 answering service, AI communications platform, CRM integration, ServiceTitan integration, overflow call handling, outbound sales AI, customer interaction management, Y Combinator, Apurva Shrivastava, Tyson Chen, small business AI, trade services technology, booking rate optimization