AI bots begin to speak well for business

Enterprises around the world, including in India, are increasingly turning to Artificial Intelligence-powered chatbots for customer acquisition, knowledge management and employee engagement. Last September, visa outsourcing and technology services company VFS Global, deployed a chatbot--Viva--offering round-the-clock assistance to visa applicants headed to Australia. Powered by artificial intelligence (AI), the chatbot can decipher patterns from previous interactions, what customers and VFS Global consider as useful information. "Viva radically decreases the response time by replacing an interaction with call centres through chats. Also, it has helped us understand which queries to focus on to improve user experience," said Benjamin Boesch, digital and e-commerce head at VFS Global. In India, Raymond has roped in Applicate IT Solutions' Sellina AI assistant to help, train and engage with the textile giant's 5,000-strong dealer network.