AI and Nonprofits: Will Bots Make Transition from Functional to Friendship?

The next disruptive technology phase is already upon here and it includes a technology designed to emulate human conversation – chatbots programmed with artificial intelligence. It will have implications for nonprofits way beyond simply setting up a Facebook Messenger bot for your nonprofit's Facebook Brand Page. With over 100,000 bots created on the Facebook Messenger platform and the rise of AI and conversational user interfaces (think SIRI), Gartner analysts predict by 2020 the average person will have more conversations with bots than their spouse. Opportunities to chat with robots are growing, whether it through our smartphones, tablets, home appliances, virtual personal assistants or our cars.And, while we might think being addicted to chatting with a virtual chatbot is more like fodder for an episode of Black Mirror, it isn't. Gartner analyst suggests this trend will have far more impact on our lives, work, and society than social media and connectivity did a decade ago. Think about how you've interacted with SIRI.