Battle of the bots: How your AI can compete by meeting consumers' needs

Sebastien Reeve, director of product management at Nuance Communications, explores why tech firms need to tailor their AI technology to the needs of consumers to succeed. From Facebook launching chatbots on messenger, to Alexa and Google Home bringing virtual assistants to consumers on a greater scale than ever before, this year will certainly be remembered as'the rise of the bots.' However, as this technology continues to transform our experience of engaging with companies and in the home, we'll see the wheat separated from the chaff. During this time, we'll see the good bots establishing industry best practices. To date, it hasn't all been plain sailing for the early innovators in the field. While a number of virtual assistants showed their true potential for positively revolutionising the customer experience, the chatbot that Microsoft launched on Twitter demonstrated how in the wrong hands this technology can have negative output, with the bot assimilating Twitter users' worst tendencies into its personality.