“I'm incredibly excited for the new virtual assistant because it's a step forward for digital equity and a chance for us to move together as a state without leaving anyone behind," Aden said.

She emigrated to Minnesota in 2006 with her parents, and from the age of 12 she helped them translate English instructions into her native Somali. Aden joined leaders in the Department of Public Safety, Minnesota IT Services and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development last week to announce the launch of the DVS virtual assistant. Watch the announcement here.

The virtual assistant leverages Google artificial intelligence to make interactions with DVS better for English, Hmong, Somali and Spanish speaking customers.

DVS Director Pong Xiong knows how important these services can be to Minnesotans of all backgrounds. As a member of the Hmong community, he has seen firsthand how difficult navigating government can be for his family and friends who didn't speak English when they emigrated here.

“As a new American, you do feel very small when you can't do things on your own," Xiong said. “What this tool does is allow Minnesotans to independently interact with DVS and I think that's one step in the right direction for our communities."

DVS staff listened to feedback from communities across Minnesota over the past few years and heard a common theme: Easier access to DVS services in multiple languages must be a priority. DVS online visitors can use the virtual assistant to ask questions, gather information and research topics in one of four languages.

Visit the Virtual Assistant at drive.mn.gov and look for the HELP button in the lower right of the screen.

• Click on the HELP chat bubble icon.
• Select preferred language — English, Español, Hmoob, or Af-Soomaali
• Select one of the self-service topics:
  • FAQs
  • Update insurance
  • Driver's license status
  • Title status
  • Plate status
  • Vehicle sold/donated/removed
  • Submit feedback
• Or enter a question in the response area below the response area at the bottom of chat window.

Customers can ask multiple questions in a chat session. It provides answers to the most common questions DVS receives on any given day. Users can also update their insurance and obtain individualized records such as their driver's license status and status of their plates and title. 

"What's great about the virtual assistant is that it gets smarter the more it's used," Xiong said. “Even if you're not quite sure where you're trying to go and which information you're trying to get, you and the assistant can figure that out together throughout the conversation."

For now, the program is text only, but we are looking at growing it to include speech. We also plan to include other languages as the program grows.

Learn more about DVS's services on our website.​