In the constantly changing world of financial services, one person is taking a revolutionary approach to banking and debt management challenges.
Nicolas Diaz has leveraged his deep expertise in generative AI and software engineering and his entrepreneurial skills to transform how banks interact with customers and manage debt.
His innovative contributions enhance operational efficiency, redefine customer experience, and set new industry standards.
“Debt management has traditionally been one of the most challenging aspects of banking,” notes Diaz.
“Conventional methods often involve a huge investment in staff, who are uncomfortable with making calls to ask for money owed. As a result, banks would see their customer relationships and brand reputation damaged
“I knew there was an opportunity to apply AI to create a more empathetic and efficient approach to debt collection.
Diaz is the President and Founder of domu.ai, a platform that automates communication between banks and their debtors, current clients, and future customers.
Such is the success of domu.ai, designed by Diaz it has already saved banking institutions thousands of hours and millions of dollars.
“Typically we help our clients save between 5,000 and 10,000 work hours per week. And our services and solutions manage operations for around 100,000 clients per enterprise each week,” reveals Diaz.
Domu.ai currently serves some of the world’s most significant banks and insurance companies in the US, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.
Diaz reveals: “A notable success story is in our first month of implementation, we recovered $1.5 million for a client. On average, our clients collectively save over $50 million.”
There is no doubt Diaz’s expertise as the figures speak for themselves.
He first became interested in aspects of computing when he got into gaming. By the time he was 13 years old, he was coding his own games: “I started experimenting with Java by creating simple games like Snake,” he recalls.
“This experience helped me connect with the computer science group at my middle and high school. After developing my own games, I began building websites and databases around 14, diving deeper into coding.”
Diaz also started to embrace his entrepreneurial side during his teenage years. Growing up with his mom and grandma, he saw how much they loved cosmetic products.
This sparked a bright idea: “Thinking I could make money, I started selling these products door-to-door with my mom’s help,” he recalls.
“By the time I was a teenager, I was selling soccer posters at my high school, making around $100 to $150 a week, which was a significant amount for me then.”
Diaz adds: “These experiences reflect two main aspects of my early life: a passion for selling and a deep interest in games and computers. I was always trying to build something new.”
His passion for technology grew— as a teenager he attended and judged his first hackathon: “I remember my first tech event and being amazed at how much I loved solving problems with technology and building new things.”
It is a passion that still drives Diaz to this day: “I want to attend new conferences and events continuously.”
He has had judging roles at notable events including Stanford’s TreeHacks and Y Combinator’s application process to showcase his authority and respect within the tech community.
By 2021 Diaz was an independent contractor with a high remuneration role at Cerebrum LLC.
His earnings placed him in Colombia’s top 1% of professionals, reflecting his exceptional skills and expertise.
In the same year, Diaz was selected from over 600 applicants to participate in the prestigious Makers Fellowship in Bogota, Colombia.
This recognition marked the beginning of his stratospheric ascent in the tech world.
In 2022, Diaz’s work with the Mina Protocol earned him multiple grants totaling $25,000, highlighting his significant contributions to Mina’s core technology.
The same year, he emerged victorious at the Eth Global Mexico Hackathon, securing a $4,000 prize for his innovative solutions.
However, he found his true calling by creating domu.ai: “I love working with big corporations and finding solutions that can save time,” says Diaz.
“Learning from them and providing services that impact thousands or even millions of people is incredibly rewarding. The scale of impact we can achieve with large companies is immense, which I find truly exciting.
Unlike traditional systems that rely on scripted interactions, domu.ai uses advanced machine learning algorithms to understand each customer’s unique situation and behavior.
This enables the platform to offer personalized solutions and recommendations, making debt management a more humane and effective process.
Personalized support also fosters trust and loyalty, improves customer satisfaction, saves time, and enhances the efficiency of the debt collection process.
One of domu.ai’s key strengths is its ability to seamlessly integrate with existing banking systems. Diaz has designed the platform to be adaptable, ensuring that banks can implement it without significant disruptions to their operations.
This is particularly important in an industry where technological advancements must align with complex legacy systems and strict regulatory requirements.
Domu.ai is also highly scalable, and capable of handling many interactions simultaneously.
Diaz has relished the challenge of the service’s scalability: “By scaling out our technologies, millions of people can interact with them,” he reveals.
“For instance, we started with just 5,000 calls per month a year ago, and now we handle over 6 million calls monthly.”
“Adapting our technology, infrastructure, and team to this growth has been incredibly challenging and deeply rewarding. I love facing these challenges and am grateful for the opportunities they bring.”
The other aspect of the platform he has created which Diaz loves is its ability to save people time: “Through our work with clients, we’ve managed to save over 1.5 million hours of manual labor,” he says.
“This is particularly meaningful to me because wasting time has always been frustrating. Knowing that our solutions save so much time for so many people is extremely gratifying.”
Domu.ai currently collaborates with the Addi largest buy-now-pay-later solution in Colombia, BBVA—the largest bank in Spain, and BNP Paribas Cardif, the insurance branch of France’s largest bank.
The platform also provide AI banking and insurance solutions for Skandia, and MetLife, underscoring Diaz’s impact on the industry.
Collectively, domu.ai serves over 100 million customers for its clients, reflecting the significant scale and impact of the partnerships Diaz has forged personally.
His expertise and leadership have also been recognized by prominent organizations. In 2024, he was selected for Y Combinator’s Summer Batch, joining the top 1% of founders to receive their investment and support. The organization has also included Airbnb, Dropbox and Instacart.
Additionally, Endeavor, a global community of high-impact entrepreneurs, chose him as a mentor for his knowledge of generative AI and its financial applications, further cementing his reputation as a thought leader.
Diaz’s vision for domu.ai goes beyond improving operational efficiency; it aims to transform debt collection into a customer-centric process. Traditional debt collection methods often lead to negative customer experiences and strained relationships.
“Approximately 80% of our use cases are in collections,” says Diaz.
“In the context of credit cards, collections involve contacting customers in debt. Traditionally, these calls are made by human agents, who find them difficult.”
Diaz knew domu.ai had to focus on building trust and providing support, turning a typically negative interaction into a positive one.
“Our clients now use our voice software for the purpose of collections,” he says.
“This allows their teams to focus on more revenue-generating activities and things they enjoy.
“While collections are our primary focus due to high demand, we also provide solutions for sales and retention. We had to become experts in collections because it was the area with the greatest need.”
Using AI to understand a customer’s financial situation and offer tailored solutions, domu.ai helps customers feel more in control of their debt management.
This empathetic approach improves recovery rates and enhances the overall customer experience, making debt collection a more positive and constructive process.
Diaz’s expertise in AI and passion for innovation continue to propel domu.ai to new heights. His technical engineer and entrepreneur background have equipped him with the skills and knowledge necessary to develop groundbreaking solutions for the banking industry.
Under Diaz’s leadership, the platform has quickly gained recognition as a leader in AI-driven banking solutions.
And his commitment to excellence and continuous improvement ensures that the platform remains at the forefront of technological advancements, consistently delivering value to banks and their customers.
Camila Zancanella, works alongside Diaz at domu.ai as the Co-owner of the startup. He brought her in as an investor.
They met through Andres Bilbao, one of the Co-Founders of Rappi, a tech company similar to Doordash and Instacart which is committed to encouraging businesses to adopt e-commerce in Latin America. Diaz brought Zanacanella in to work with him at domu.ai.
She says he is incredibly driven and committed to excellence: When I met Nicolas I thought, ‘I need this person in my life to make me better!’
“He is incredibly good at prioritizing and getting things done. Nicolas is also very empathetic and can see when you are struggling. He continuously offers help and wants to make himself and those around him better. And of course the experience for those who use domu.ai.”
Zanacella adds: “One of his other attributes is Nicolas also knows when he is wrong and is more than willing to take feedback objectively.
“He sees it as another opportunity to grow. And when he knows something he has done is wrong, he will be open to owning that. I think that is a very special quality. Especially in someone as highly skilled and knowledgeable as Nicolas.”
Daniel Bilbao is the Co-Founder of Truora, a platform that offers automated support for businesses with their customers.
He has been working with Diaz for the last two years: “Even though we’re a five-year-old startup, and were more ahead, in our path, I asked Nicolas to mentor some of our sales team and our BDR team, just so they get a sense of what’s possible.
“Even though domu.ai is a much younger team and a much younger startup, Nicolas helps my company improve by showing us what great looks like.”
The serial entrepreneur adds: “In Nicolas, you’ll find someone who’s generous with knowledge and always trying to help make those around them better and multiply, as they say.
The second benefit is you get someone with a very strong work ethic. He’s someone that will run through walls and do whatever it takes to achieve his goals.
“Nicolas is also someone who’s very concerned about people’s well being and making sure that his team is treated correctly. This is something that is hard to find.
As AI continues to evolve, platforms like domu.ai have a limitless capability to impact the banking industry.
Diaz and his team are constantly exploring new ways to enhance the platform’s capabilities, ensuring that banks can stay ahead of the curve in an increasingly competitive landscape.
“The message I want to share is that we are responsible for putting a smile on the clients’ faces,” says Diaz.
“We have the power to change the day-to-day lives of millions of people. I always strive to improve the world for one person and then a million people every day through our work.”
He adds: “Our primary challenge is global expansion. We are running pilot programs in Africa, Europe, and Asia to establish ourselves as a global company. We aim to operate in over 100 countries, offering our services worldwide.
“I hope to be seen as someone who uses technology positively to impact thousands or millions of people in their everyday lives.”
Diaz is offering innovative contributions to banking through domu.ai that are transforming the industry.
By offering personalized, secure, and efficient solutions, thanks to his superior expertise, the platform sets new standards for how banks manage debt and engage with their customers.
As the financial services sector continues to embrace AI-driven innovations, the future of debt management looks brighter than ever, with improved customer experiences and streamlined operations leading the way.
