Early Production Results for Blend’s Autopilot Show What Agentic AI Means For Lending

Key Terms

agentic ai technical

Agentic AI refers to computer systems that can make their own decisions and take actions without needing someone to tell them what to do each time. It's like giving a robot a degree of independence to solve problems or achieve goals on its own, which matters because it could change how we work and interact with technology in everyday life.

pre-underwriting financial

Pre-underwriting is the stage before a formal underwriting agreement where an issuer and potential underwriters evaluate an upcoming securities offering, perform preliminary due diligence, discuss structure and pricing ranges, and gauge investor interest. It matters to investors because it indicates how far along an offering is, the likely size and terms being considered, and the level of market demand or risk before binding commitments are made.

pull-through rates financial

Pull-through rate measures how much follow-on or recurring use of a product occurs after an initial sale or prescription, typically expressed as a percentage of potential or actual users who buy or use the consumable, accessory, or therapy tied to a platform. For investors it signals the strength and sustainability of downstream demand—similar to how a coffee machine’s value depends on how often owners buy coffee pods—so it helps estimate recurring revenue and growth potential.

loan-cycle times financial

The number of times a borrower takes out successive loans with a lender, or the average count of repeat loan engagements per customer over a measured period. Like tracking how many times a shopper returns to buy more, higher loan-cycle times indicate repeat business and can signal predictable revenue, changing credit risk as borrowers gain repayment history, or greater customer loyalty for lenders. Investors use it to gauge growth, portfolio stability, and borrower behavior patterns.

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Lenders using Blend Autopilot’s pre-underwriting agent saw 10-15% higher pull-through rates and an estimated $600 lower cost per funded loan

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Blend (NYSE: BLND) today shared early production results for Autopilot, its agentic system for lending, showing a marked increase in pull-through rates and a reduction in loan-cycle times. Since March 2026, Autopilot's pre-underwriting agent has processed more than 50,000 live production loans across lenders on Blend's Home Lending platform.

Across the analyzed cohorts, lenders using Autopilot’s pre-underwriting agent saw:

• Pull-through rates 10% to 15% higher
• Loan-cycle times shortened by 2 to 4 days
• 4.5 hours of loan fulfillment tasks automated on average per loan
• An estimated $600 saved in fulfillment costs per funded loan

The early impact comes from live production loans with real borrowers, not pilots or simulations. Blend compared 24 lender and loan-type cohorts against their own pre-Autopilot performance, covering more than 175,000 loans.

The results point to a shift larger than efficiency gains. Most AI in lending today accelerates individual steps in a process that still runs sequentially, with each stage waiting on the one before it. Autopilot's agent-first model works the file in parallel and in real time, which changes what the origination process costs, how long it takes, and when borrowers get answers.

“I think the biggest mistake people make with AI is trying to be too incremental. Our approach is to ask: What would this industry look like if you designed it from the ground up around agents?” said Nima Ghamsari, Co-founder and Head of Blend. "That's no longer a thought experiment. Autopilot has run on more than 50,000 live production loans, and the economics are already changing.”

How Autopilot Works

More than half of borrowers apply for a mortgage loan outside business hours, and more than 90% of borrowers who submit do so within 24 hours of starting, according to Blend network data. Borrower intent is highest in that first day and fades quickly: friction that stalls an application overnight doesn't just delay it, it risks losing the borrower to a competitor. For lenders, that makes the first 24 hours a critical window to keep borrowers moving, even when no one is staffed to respond.

Autopilot operates inside that window. It reviews the application in real time, identifies missing or inconsistent information, completes pre-underwriting work, and follows up with the borrower while they are still engaged. Files reach processing and underwriting cleaner, reducing rework, borrower callbacks, and late-stage conditions.

"Instead of a person taking the first pass and an agent checking the work, Autopilot agents are working behind the scenes before a human ever touches the file. Rules-based automation could never do that, because rules only work on predictable files, and underwriters spend all their time on the ones that aren't," Ghamsari added. "By the time it reaches a loan team, the work is done, which gives them their time back to spend with borrowers instead of paperwork."

Availability

Autopilot became commercially available on July 1 for lenders on Blend’s Home Lending platform. Six lenders have already signed contracts that include Autopilot. For more information, visit blend.com/platform/blend-autopilot/.

About Blend

Blend Labs Inc. (NYSE: BLND) is a leading origination platform for digital banking solutions. Financial providers, from large banks, fintechs, and credit unions to community and independent mortgage banks, use Blend’s platform to transform banking experiences for their customers. Learn more at blend.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260820158280/en/

Press contact
press@blend.com

Source: Blend