Bannockburn, IL (May 5, 2026) — Great Lakes Credit Union (GLCU) is excited to highlight recent investments and partnerships that advance its long-term strategy to modernize financial services through innovation, combining AI, new mortgage-market solutions, and financial empowerment tools that expand access and opportunity for members at every stage of their financial journeys.
GLCU is proud to partner with AviaryAI, a leading tech company that empowers financial institutions with impactful AI solutions, to implement an outbound AI voice agent that can communicate important account information to members. GLCU worked with AviaryAI to deploy “Oliver,” an AI voice agent that has assisted members with merger-related account transitions, new member onboarding, and more.
Mortgage Forward, LLC—a wholly owned subsidiary of GLCU specializing in nationwide mortgage solutions—is working with AviaryAI to embed applied generative AI into mortgage origination and servicing workflows. The collaboration is designed to help credit unions and financial institutions expand capacity and responsiveness while maintaining compliance, consistency, and a member-first experience.
Planned enhancements include proactive loss-mitigation outreach, streamlined origination processes, and a smarter internal knowledge base that helps staff resolve questions faster and more consistently, reducing operational friction at a time when mortgage teams face tighter staffing models, heightened regulatory demands, and rising member expectations.
GLCU is also collaborating with financial technology company Takara to bring DREAM (Discount for Real Estate Affordability and Mobility) to market—an innovative approach to addressing the “mortgage lock-in effect,” where borrowers with low-rate mortgages delay moving, limiting mobility and constraining housing inventory.
DREAM provides members with a discount when paying off their mortgage balance, helping families unlock flexibility while supporting healthier balance sheet outcomes for credit unions.
Momentum for DREAM is already underway. In April 2026, GLCU, Mortgage Forward, and Takara announced the successful close of the first-ever DREAM transaction—where Chicago homeowners received a check for more than $41,000 at closing through a principal balance reduction that helped unlock mobility from a low-rate mortgage.
GLCU also recently invested in Cambio Elevate, an AI-powered financial empowerment platform designed to help underserved consumers build credit, manage debt, and save money through a single, easy-to-use app. Its purpose-built conversational AI helps handle complex tasks, including AI voice agents that can support users in disputing credit reporting errors and settling debts with confidence. To drive credit union membership growth, Cambio Elevate will match their platform users with GLCU’s affordable, tailored products like the 2nd-chance checking account and the 0.00% APR* credit builder loan.
Additionally, to extend the benefits of innovation beyond traditional use cases, GLCU recently partnered with LetMeDoIt to advance financial inclusion by designing tools that better reflect how people manage money in daily life.
The collaboration supports individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, seniors, caregivers, and families, strengthening financial management, promoting long-term security, and helping reduce vulnerability to fraud and financial exploitation.
Together, these initiatives reflect GLCU’s approach to technology investment, which includes partnering with mission-aligned innovators, piloting solutions in real operational environments, and scaling what works, so teams can deliver faster service, clearer guidance, and better financial outcomes across the member journey.
“Our strategy is to invest in technology that makes a measurable difference for members and the teams who serve them,” said Michael Abraham, Chief Strategy Officer at GLCU. “By partnering with innovators in AI, mortgage mobility, inclusive design, and financial empowerment, we’re modernizing how financial services are delivered so more people can access the right support at the right time and move forward with confidence.”
With these investments and collaborations—including AviaryAI, Takara, LetMeDoIt, and Cambio Elevate—GLCU continues to build an innovative ecosystem that helps members navigate their financial goals with greater clarity, flexibility, and support.
About Great Lakes Credit Union (GLCU)
Founded in 1938 and headquartered in Northern Illinois, Great Lakes Credit Union is banking for a greater good. As a not-for-profit financial cooperative with more than $1.4 billion in assets, GLCU is proud to serve more than 105,000 members in Chicagoland and surrounding areas, and to give back to its members and communities through education, volunteerism, and partnerships. Learn more at www.glcu.org.