Behind the Screens, The Minds Behind AiCR

Building document automation software sounds straightforward until you start working with real-world documents.

Every lender, servicer, investor, and financial institution has different requirements, different formats, and different workflows.

How do you build an intelligent document processing platform that can handle all of them?

In Episode 11 of The AiCR Exchange, Joe Furlong sits down with members of the AiCR development team to discuss what it takes to build document processing software, the challenges of working with unstructured data, and where document automation is headed next.

Why is document automation difficult to build?

One of the biggest challenges in document automation is that users rarely provide information in a standardized format. Documents arrive in different structures, layouts, and file types, yet users still expect consistent outputs.

The AiCR development team describes this as one of the most difficult aspects of building the platform. Unlike traditional software that requires users to conform to predefined templates, AiCR is designed to accept a wide variety of inputs and transform them into structured outputs.

This flexibility creates a significantly more complex development challenge but allows the platform to support a broader range of document workflows.

What makes mortgage and financial documents difficult to automate?

Mortgage and financial services organizations work with large volumes of documents that often contain inconsistent formatting, varying naming conventions, and unique business requirements.

The challenge is not simply extracting information. The challenge is understanding what users want to accomplish with that information after extraction.

According to the development team, document automation requires solving thousands of possible scenarios rather than supporting a single predefined workflow. This complexity is one of the reasons many document-heavy processes remain manual today.

How does AiCR approach document processing differently?

Many software platforms require users to adapt their processes to fit the software. AiCR takes the opposite approach.

The platform is designed to accept a wide variety of document types and user requirements while giving organizations flexibility in how information is extracted, organized, validated, and delivered.

This approach allows users to work with their existing documents and workflows rather than redesigning their operations around software limitations.

Why is flexibility important in document workflows?

No two organizations process documents exactly the same way.

Different departments, investors, lenders, and counterparties often require different outputs from the same source documents.

The AiCR team discussed how flexibility is built into the platform so users can define outcomes based on their specific business requirements. Rather than forcing a single workflow, the goal is to support many different workflow variations while maintaining consistency and accuracy.

How do software developers solve problems that have not been solved before?

One theme throughout the conversation was that many of the challenges facing document automation do not have existing answers.

Developers cannot simply search for a solution and implement it. Instead, they often have to experiment, test different approaches, and create new solutions for unique business problems.

The team described this as one of the most rewarding aspects of building AiCR. Every new challenge presents an opportunity to create capabilities that did not previously exist.

What is the future of document automation?

The AiCR development team sees document automation moving toward increasingly touchless workflows.

The long-term goal is to reduce the amount of manual effort required to process, organize, and use information. As automation improves, users should spend less time interacting with software and more time working with the results.

Rather than forcing users to navigate complex systems, future workflows will focus on delivering the information users need with minimal manual intervention.

According to the team, success means making document processing so seamless that users can accomplish their objectives without thinking about the technology behind it.

Frequently Asked Questions About Document Automation

What is document automation?

Document automation is the process of extracting, organizing, validating, and delivering information from documents with minimal manual effort. It reduces the need for users to manually review, sort, and enter data.

Why are unstructured documents difficult to process?

Unstructured documents often contain inconsistent formats, layouts, and data locations. Unlike standardized forms, they require systems to identify relevant information despite significant variation between documents.

Why is flexibility important in document processing software?

Organizations often have unique workflows, reporting requirements, and business rules. Flexible document processing software allows users to work within existing processes rather than forcing them to adopt a predefined workflow.

What is a touchless workflow?

A touchless workflow is a process that requires little or no manual intervention. Information moves from document intake to final output through automation rather than human processing.

How does document automation support operational efficiency?

Document automation reduces manual review, accelerates processing times, improves consistency, and allows teams to focus on higher-value activities rather than repetitive administrative tasks.