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Gold Coast Tech Start-up Sophiie AI Raises $5 Million to Take Virtual Receptionist for Tradies to the UK, US

Australian Financial Review

ENRICHED

Details

Date Published
14 Aug 2026
Priority Score
1
Australian
Yes
Created
14 Aug 2026, 04:00 pm

Authors (1)

Description

Waiting for that tradie to call back? A Gold Coast start-up using AI as a virtual receptionist has won backing from venture capital to take the idea global.

Summary

This report highlights the commercial scaling of Sophiie AI, an Australian-developed agentic AI tool designed to automate administrative tasks such as job booking and quoting for tradespeople. While the article demonstrates the increasing deployment of autonomous AI agents in the small business sector, it focuses primarily on economic productivity and international market expansion. The technology described pertains to narrow, task-specific automation rather than frontier AI capabilities or existential risk management. Consequently, the article's relevance to global AI safety governance or catastrophic risk reduction is minimal, serving instead as a case study for AI adoption in the Australian service economy.

Body

TechnologyAIPrint articleBrittney LevinsonQueensland reporterAug 14, 2026 – 5.32pmFielding about 100 inquiries a week, electrician Adam Di Placido says his Perth-based business was missing calls and having trouble keeping track of customer details through a traditional reception format.For what Di Placido says costs about “one-10th” of a person’s wage, Adco Electrics is now using artificial intelligence alongside his administration staff to take calls, book jobs, send notifications and even generate quotes.Loading...SaveLog in or Subscribe to save articleShareCopy linkCopiedEmailLinkedInTwitterFacebookCopy linkCopiedShare via...Gift this articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? LoginLicense articleRead MoreAIStart-upsFundingGold CoastJohn GandelFetching latest articles