Artificial intelligence (AI) is now helping businesses to close deals more quickly.

Many already use an online platform called Aligned to streamline the otherwise chaotic back-and-forth process toward both sides signing on the dotted line.

They negotiate in virtual sales rooms, designed to eliminate the many blind spots in the buildup to a deal, and to give them control over a dizzying number of moving parts.

AI is now making the process even quicker and more efficient by handling queries for the buyer and telling the seller what the buyer’s been up to, while both parties are busy doing other things.

In a nutshell, using Aligned’s means a complex set of negotiations can continue, even though neither side is there, either physically or online.

“Our goal is to seamlessly integrate advanced AI technologies that empower sellers by elevating the experiences they can offer buyers, even in their absence,” said Gal Deitsch, the company’s chief product officer.

Speed is of the essence in a business environment where delays can often kill a deal.

“The data is not conclusive due to the early stages of the launch,” said Gal Aga, the company’s CEO. “However, before the AI we’ve seen, on average, a 30 percent reduction in sales cycles. We believe that with the AI we will see a similar impact on top of that.”

The integration of two distinct AI features — AI-Assist and AI-Insights — into the existing platform will, the company says, offer buyers and sellers greater efficiencies without being overbearing.

“By intelligently sorting and organizing data, buyers have seamless access to crucial information tailored to their specific needs and stages in the buying process,” according to the company.

Aligned, a Tel Aviv-based startup that launched in 2021, says it allows buyers and sellers to connect and communicate more easily, and is changing the way people work, much like Zoom or Slack, the business messaging app.

It is already working with Deel (global payroll and compliance), Intel (the semiconductor giant) and Similarweb (web analytics and market intelligence), which use its sales rooms to manage and track all their sales processes.

The new AI feature now allows Similarweb salespeople, for example, to receive AI-generated insights about exactly how the process moved forward while they were offline, while the potential client can ask questions of a chatbot and get answers in real-time.

Furthermore, the product is said to free up decisionmakers from speaking to salespeople and leaves more time for the salespeople to focus on more complicated tasks and complete more deals.