Understanding the key differences between chatbots and virtual agents

The differences between a virtual agent and a chatbot are actually bigger than you might think. To help distinguish between the two technologies, it's helpful to draw a parallel with another popular technology--the smartphone. When it comes to understanding the difference between chatbots and virtual agents, there are parallels to the evolution of a technology that has evolved significantly and is not referred to differently than it used to be--the smartphone. Fewer and fewer people regularly use the words'telephone' and'smartphone' interchangeably anymore, primarily because they are technically and functionally referring to two very different devices. Both a phone and a smartphone can be used to make calls, but that's where the similarities stop.