With the slogan ‘We help immigrants make America great again’, the function of chat bot-style ‘lawyer’ Visabot is unambiguous – to help immigrants travel to and work in the United States, based on the belief that global collaboration is essential to innovation. Currently available in beta on Facebook Messenger, Visabot is able to assess applicants’ chances of being awarded an O-1 visa for ‘exceptional individuals’ – the kind most commonly sought for skilled tech workers and startup founders -- for the United States using data from their Linkedin profiles and short questionnaires. It is also able to assist with extending B-2 visas for business or tourism.

Supporting innovation through immigration

Visabot’s co-creators worked with lawyers to assess more than 100 visa applications, using the data found therein to help stimulate the bot’s ‘machine learning’ process. It is expected that the platform will become even more efficient and effective in evaluating visa applications the more data it is exposed to through applicants voluntarily providing their own data for assessment. Founder Artem Goldman has rejected the idea that the launch of Visabot is a political statement – rather, it’s about a commitment to supporting business innovation be maintaining immigration pathways for talented individuals. A 2010 report found that 40 per cent of the Fortune 500 companies in the US were founded by immigrants or the children of immigrants.

Sources: Venture Beat; Phone Arena