AN office block in Warrington town centre has claimed a UK technological first.

The Base, on Dallam Lane, has become the first in the country to be fitted with the ‘next generation of robotics’.

Tenants of the technology and engineering hub are now served by a bespoke chatbot, nicknamed the BaseBot.

Sylvie Morton of Langtree, which manages the building on behalf of Warrington & Co, said: “The BaseBot allows occupants to identify basic information such as whether any mail has been logged for them.

“This is proving particularly popular in light of the Covid emergency, as people can check information remotely if they have to work from home.

“BaseBot is designed to give as much control to our tenants as possible.

“We’re adding to its functionality and it’s already proving very popular, with more than 50 per cent of tenants logging in regularly.”

The system has been developed by Base-based Chatbot Labs and can respond to verbal or written commands.

It is anticipated that it will be able to help businesses to track their energy usage, rent and rates payable and current broadband speeds in the near future.

Creator Chris Bain described BaseBot as ‘the office equivalent of Alexa or Siri’ and predicts that all businesses and buildings will soon have their own versions of the technology.

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He added: “It’s great that Warrington is leading the country on this innovation.

“It’s really straightforward and it made sense to showcase it at The Base.

“We’re developing BaseBot as we go, but any company can adopt the principle.

“If you run an accountancy practice and want to review a client’s file, you can ask the chatbot to find the information for you whilst you and colleagues get on with something more valuable.

“Factories have had robots for decades, and now offices will soon have digital robots.”