Case Study: Australian Taxation Office achieves 88% first-contact resolution and $9.7M annual red‑tape savings with Nuance Communications' Nina virtual assistant Alex

Australian Tax Office Deploys new virtual assistant

The Australian Taxation Office faced rising client interactions and seasonal spikes that strained its contact centre and increased demand for online support. To expand 24/7 self‑service, reduce call volumes and evaluate virtual assistant options, the Australian Taxation Office partnered with Nuance Communications and chose Nuance’s Nina virtual assistant technology to pilot a government‑facing AI assistant (Alex).

Nuance Communications implemented Nina with natural language understanding, conversational dialogue and advanced resolution strategies to launch Alex across the ATO website. Alex handled 2M+ conversations in the first 18 months, achieved an 88% first‑contact resolution rate (Sept 2017), delivered roughly $9.7M per year in client red‑tape savings and helped drive an 8–10% reduction in contact centre call volumes, shifting interactions to lower‑cost digital channels.

Australian Taxation Office