AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
London South Bank University has awarded a direct, below-threshold contract to Intercom R&D Unlimited Company for conversational search and agentic AI services to support student self-service outside normal hours. The published award value is USD 67,284 excluding VAT (USD 80,740.80 gross).
Published outcomeAward marked active; the record includes a scheduled future signature date of 14 October 2026, so the supplied data does not establish that the contract had been signed at publication.
Market significanceA small direct award for AI-enabled student-service tooling, including professional services and token usage.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
Intercom R&D Unlimited Company
100% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · 67,284 excluding VAT; 80,740.80 gross USD · Awarded supplier; identity status not applicable to Companies House verification
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Award 1 names Intercom R&D Unlimited Company as supplier and gives amount 67,284 and amountGross 80,740.8 USD. Supplier record identifies it with GB-PPON PNWW-6827-XDXY and Ireland address.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Notice type
100% confidenceContract award notice on Find a Tender
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Document 096941-2026 is labelled "Contract award notice on Find a Tender".
Award status
100% confidenceActive
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Award 1 has status "active".
Tender status
100% confidenceComplete
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Tender NT2007 and lot 1 are marked "complete".
Signature status
100% confidenceFuture signature date scheduled for 14 October 2026
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Award milestone is type "futureSignatureDate", due 2026-10-14 23:59:59+01:00, with status "scheduled".
Contract start
100% confidence14 October 2026
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Award contractPeriod.startDate is 2026-10-14.
VALUES
Published values explained
Award value excluding VAT
100% confidenceUSD 67,284
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Award 1 value.amount is 67284 USD; the tender description states the one-year contract value is $67,284 excluding VAT.
Award gross value
100% confidenceUSD 80,740.80
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Award 1 value.amountGross is 80740.8 USD.
Value allocation
98% confidenceAward-level value allocated to the sole listed supplier and lot 1
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Award 1 names one supplier and relates to lot 1.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Award decision date
100% confidence29 July 2026
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Award 1 date is 2026-07-29.
Contract award notice published
100% confidence14 October 2026
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Document 096941-2026 datePublished is 2026-10-14T12:04:29+01:00.
Contract period start
100% confidence14 October 2026
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Award contractPeriod.startDate is 2026-10-14.
Contract period end
100% confidence18 August 2027
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Award contractPeriod.endDate is 2027-08-18T23:59:59+01:00.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
100% confidenceConversational search and agentic AI for student services
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Tender title is "Conversational Search - Agentic A.I." and description says the buyer seeks AI technology to improve student service and enable out-of-hours self-service.
Supply components
100% confidenceProfessional services and token usage
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Tender description states: "This will be professional services and the use of Tokens."
Procurement category
100% confidenceServices
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Award 1 mainProcurementCategory is "services".
Classification
100% confidenceCPV 72200000 — Software programming and consultancy services
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Award item 1 lists CPV 72200000 with that description.
Delivery location
100% confidenceUnited Kingdom
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Award item delivery address lists region UK and country GB.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procurement method
100% confidenceDirect
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Tender procurementMethod is "direct".
Procedure detail
100% confidenceBelow threshold — without competition
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Tender procurementMethodDetails is "Below threshold - without competition".
Above-threshold status
100% confidenceNo
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Award 1 aboveThreshold is false.
Competition information
98% confidenceNo competitive process is indicated; bid count and evaluation information were not supplied.
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The published procedure is direct and below threshold without competition; no bid or evaluation fields are provided.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Published contract period
100% confidence14 October 2026 to 18 August 2027
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Award contractPeriod specifies these start and end dates.
Options
100% confidenceToken usage may require further purchases if estimated tokens are exhausted
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Award options state that token usage is currently an estimate and more tokens will need to be purchased if all tokens are used.
Option pricing and limit
100% confidenceNot published
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The options description contains no value, quantity, ceiling or approval mechanism.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Consumption exposure
95% confidenceToken consumption could create spend beyond the stated estimated usage.
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The published option states that additional tokens will need to be purchased if all estimated tokens are used.
Route to market
100% confidenceThe award was made through a direct below-threshold procedure without competition.
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Tender procurementMethodDetails states "Below threshold - without competition".
Service focus
100% confidenceThe stated use case is student self-service, including out-of-hours access.
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Tender description explicitly refers to improving service to students and self-service out of hours.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Signature and conclusion evidence
100% confidenceThe notice is an award notice and the award is active, but a future signature date remained scheduled. The supplied data does not confirm signature or execution.
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Award milestone is a scheduled futureSignatureDate of 14 October 2026.
Supplier identity treatment
100% confidenceCompanies House verification is not applicable to this supplier record; the supplier is presented using the published name and GB-PPON identifier.
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Supplier identity status is "not_applicable"; verified company fields are absent; source supplier name matches the published supplier name.
Lot detail
100% confidenceLot 1 is identified but no lot title, description or standalone lot value was supplied.
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Lot 1 has null title, description and value fields.
Contract duration inconsistency
100% confidenceThe description calls this a one-year contract, while the published period runs from 14 October 2026 to 18 August 2027; the source does not explain the difference.
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Tender description says "One year contract value"; award contractPeriod specifies 14 October 2026 to 18 August 2027.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The supplied data does not confirm that the contract was signed or executed; it records a scheduled future signature date.
- No tender publication date, submission deadline, bid count, bidder list, evaluation criteria, scoring or award rationale was supplied.
- Lot 1 has no published title, description or separate value.
- The source describes a one-year contract value but gives a contract period from 14 October 2026 to 18 August 2027; no explanation for this difference was supplied.
- The options provision gives no price, token quantity, maximum spend, ceiling or extension mechanism.
- Information not supplied in the published notice: pricing breakdown, service levels, implementation timetable, extension terms and renewal terms.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
London South Bank UniversityIntercom R&D Unlimited Companyconversational searchagentic AIstudent self-servicesoftware consultancy servicespublic procurement
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won the Conversational Search - Agentic A.I. award?
Intercom R&D Unlimited Company is the sole supplier named for award 1.
What is the published value of the award?
The award value is USD 67,284 excluding VAT, with a published gross value of USD 80,740.80.
Was the contract signed?
The supplied record does not confirm signature. It includes a scheduled future signature date of 14 October 2026.
When does the published contract period end?
The published contract period ends on 18 August 2027.
ProcuraAxis award analysis supplements, but does not replace, the official award notice, contract data or procurement documents. “Awarded” does not by itself prove that a contract has been signed.