Image by Joniec Plumbing, from Unsplash
Home-Services Industry Sees Gradual AI Integration
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
AI is changing how home repair works. Netic’s new platform helps plumbers and electricians predict needs, handle calls, and boost efficiency.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Netic automates customer calls and bookings for plumbers and electricians.
- The startup raised $20 million from Greylock and Founders Fund.
- AI predicts service needs using weather, location, and property data.
The home-services sector is undergoing a digital transformation driven by artificial intelligence, as reported in an exclusive report by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
Netic launched its platform in 2024 from San Francisco to provide AI solutions for tradespeople, including plumbers and electricians, to manage bookings, schedule service calls, and boost sales performance.
WSJ reports that through Netic’s AI system, customers receive automated responses to their calls and messages, while the system identifies urgent tasks and recommends additional services before issues arise. It can proactively reach out to homeowners to suggest purchasing a new air conditioner before summer begins.
The AI uses weather data, location information, and property details to generate marketing campaigns that forecast maintenance needs.
According to Asheem Chandna, a venture capitalist at Greylock who led Netic’s seed funding round, home-services businesses often struggle with underutilized capacity—staff who aren’t deployed as efficiently as possible, as reported by WSJ. The aim of integrating AI, he explains, is to optimize the matching of technicians with customers when help is needed, and even anticipate demand before it arises.
WSJ notes that Netic secured $20 million in funding from top investors including Greylock and Founders Fund. The platform has started to attract private-equity-owned service companies together with larger independent operators.
Melisa Tokmak, founder and CEO of Netic, explained to WSJ that the system relies on different types of AI for specific functions, such as verifying customers and analyzing the urgency of service requests. The platform is designed to integrate smoothly with existing systems, reducing complexity for business owners.
Chris Hoffmann, CEO of HB Solutions Group in St. Louis, noted that AI has helped his company more effectively align technician availability with fluctuating daily customer demand—a task he described as particularly challenging, as reported by WSJ.
Still, only 20% of customer calls are currently handled by AI. “We’re still human first,” he added, as reported by WSJ. As AI grows smarter, it may quietly become the go-to assistant for your next home repair.
Image by Gordon Joly, from Flickr
Thomson Reuters Launches Agentic AI For Tax And Accounting Professionals
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
Thomson Reuters unveiled CoCounsel, an agentic AI that automates tax and accounting work by planning, acting, and adapting within workflows.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Agentic AI plans, acts, and adapts within professional workflows with human oversight.
- CoCounsel automates complex tasks like file review, memo drafting, and compliance checks.
- Thomson Reuters acquired Materia to accelerate development of agentic AI systems.
Thomson Reuters has announced the introduction of an AI system that functions as a professional assistant, which will not only answer questions but also carry out entire tasks. The first agentic AI product from the company, named CoCounsel, is available for tax, audit, and accounting professionals.
Agentic AI goes beyond current AI assistants that only react to prompts. These advanced systems combine planning capabilities with reasoning functions, and take actions while adapting to changing needs within professional work environments.
The systems utilize data from Westlaw and Checkpoint platforms to review client files, create memos, and conduct compliance checks.
“Agentic AI isn’t a marketing buzzword. It’s a new blueprint for how complex work gets done,” said David Wong, Chief Product Officer at Thomson Reuters. “The AI understands the goal, breaks it into steps, takes action, and knows when to escalate for human input.”
CoCounsel was built in part from Materia, a startup Thomson Reuters acquired last year. According to Kevin Merlini, Vice President of Product, “This isn’t GenAI in a prettier wrapper — it’s a fully integrated, intelligent system built to do the work,” as reported by Thomson Reuters.
OpenAI, which powers parts of CoCounsel, praised the launch as a strong example of agentic AI in action. Users are already seeing results.
“Before CoCounsel, we were manually comparing residency and filing codes across 36 states. Each jurisdiction used to take us half a week to fully review—now it takes under an hour,” said Rich Marlatt, CIO at BLISS 1041, as reported by Thomson Reuters.
Thomson Reuters plans to roll out more agentic tools in legal, risk, and compliance soon. These tools will be able to draft documents, assess risks, and adapt to changes — all with human oversight.
“This is more than a product launch — it’s a clear signal of where the industry is heading,” said Wong, as reported by Thomson Reuters.
