Bank builds a robot to snoop on its sales staff

ROBOTS are spying on NatWest staff as they speak to customers in an effort to avoid future mis-selling scandals.

The bank is testing an IT system which records conversations in branches and on the phone, and analyses them to see if workers are behaving properly. It also uses artificial intelligence to detect if they’re saying something they shouldn’t – or if they’ve missed something important.

Employees will then be prompted to correct their mistake, all without any human involvement. The product – developed by tech company Recordsure – is now being tested with mortgage advisers and could be introduced more widely if it proves a success.

Les Matheson, head of retail banking at NatWest’s owner Royal Bank of Scotland, denied that the system was a Big Brother-style attempt to control staff.

‘It’s really helpful for staff, because in the end people get trained but they’re not perfect,’ he said.

‘All the feedback we’ve had from staff has been really positive and enthusiastic.’