Welcome to our monthly conversational AI blog update!
For over a year now, we have been sharing the latest developments in the world of conversational artificial intelligence through these posts. Our goal is to keep you informed on the key innovations, research breakthroughs, and real-world applications shaping this rapidly evolving field.
Conversational AI has made incredible strides in recent times. From substantial improvements in natural language processing to the rise of powerful new techniques like large language models, the capabilities of chatbots, voice assistants and other systems continue to become more human-like.
Major tech companies and startups alike are pushing boundaries in areas like customer service, marketing, healthcare and more. Each month we spotlight the most exciting new progress and provide analysis on the implications for both businesses and consumers.
Whether you’re new to conversational AI or an experienced practitioner, we hope you find value in these monthly briefings.
Investment/Partnership Deals
Dublin-based Webio raised €2.5 million in a new funding round led by Hambro Perks. The company provides a conversational AI platform for customer service. Webio will use the new funds to continue developing its technology and expand across Europe. The platform utilizes chatbots, NLP, and ML to enable personalized, automated customer interactions. Webio’s focus on credit, collections, retail, and utilities has driven impressive early traction. This new funding positions the company for rapid growth as demand rises for conversational AI solutions.
HumanFirst, a provider of low-code data productivity solutions, raised CAD 5 million in seed funding. The round was led by Panache Ventures, with participation from Inovia, Real Ventures, BoxOne, and others. The funds will drive HumanFirst’s mission to help enterprises generate insights from conversational data using its suite of low-code tools. The startup aims to make it easier for teams to collaborate on and innovate with conversational AI data at scale.
Conversational AI provider Hyro is partnering with Gozio Health to integrate AI capabilities into Gozio’s mobile platform for patients. The collaboration will embed Hyro’s voice and chatbots into Gozio’s apps, expanding patient self-service options. Key tasks to be automated include prescription refills, appointment booking, FAQs, and troubleshooting. This will streamline operations for healthcare staff. The partnership enables a unified mobile experience for patients, with AI powering key interactions. It demonstrates the growing role of conversational AI in healthcare.
Global tech services company CAI has partnered with conversational AI platform Moveworks. Together, they will provide assessments and integration services for next-gen service desks. The partners aim to enhance customer and employee experiences by leveraging large language models and machine learning. Moveworks can resolve common support issues in just seven seconds. The collaboration will help companies deploy conversational AI on existing platforms. Benefits include faster issue resolution, improved satisfaction, productivity gains, and cost savings. The partnership highlights the growing demand for conversational AI to optimize IT service management. Leading providers like CAI and Moveworks are teaming up to deliver powerful new capabilities.
New product features, highlights & use cases
Cloud communications provider SignalWire introduced its new no-code AI Agent for conversational AI. The tool allows non-developers to build and embed intelligent chatbots easily. Key features include flexibility for personalization, accelerated deployment, and integration with databases and third-party apps. With its intuitive interface requiring only plain text input, the SignalWire AI Agent aims to simplify conversational AI adoption for enterprises. The product is now available through SignalWire’s API Portal. This launch reflects the growing demand for no-code conversational AI solutions that quickly deliver automated and intelligent customer experiences.
ChaosSearch launched its Chaos AI Assistant, which uses OpenAI to enable conversational data analytics. The tool allows users to engage in natural language dialogues with log and event data to gain insights. Key features include conversational exploration, code assistance, collaboration, and real-time analytics. Chaos AI Assistant aims to make data analytics more intuitive and accessible to all users through its innovative AI interface. The launch reflects the potential of conversational AI to transform how businesses interact with and extract value from their data.
Online food delivery platform Swiggy will use conversational AI to improve user experiences. Swiggy’s new neural search feature allows more intuitive, conversational queries. Powered by a large language model adapted to food and restaurant terminology, the AI will provide tailored recommendations. No specific keywords are required. This initiative aims to make food discovery and grocery ordering easier for Swiggy’s users. The company will pilot the technology this month before rolling it out more broadly. It reflects a growing trend of using conversational interfaces to deliver more natural digital experiences.
Conversational AI provider Satisfi Labs has launched its patent-pending Context LLM Response System. The platform combines contextual responses with large language models. Key MLB teams are already using the technology, which gives brands control over messaging while leveraging generative AI efficiencies. Features include intent routing, answer generation, reporting, real-time transactions, and proactive recommendations. The system aims to take conversational AI beyond basic chatbots. It ensures responses match the brand voice and compliance needs. The launch demonstrates the potential of context-aware LLM integration to advance enterprise conversational AI.
Industry Trends
According to Gartner, conversational AI and virtual assistants fuel rapid growth in the contact centre market. The research firm forecasts 16% market growth in 2023, with conversational AI as the fastest-growing segment. Contact centres are investing more in conversational AI to automate customer service interactions. Gartner estimates 3% of interactions will leverage AI this year, rising to 14% by 2027. While most interactions will remain human-augmented, reliance on live agents is decreasing. Virtual agents will handle simple, repetitive requests, enabling humans to focus on complex issues. This growth underscores the strategic value of conversational AI for customer service. Forward-thinking contact centres are now implementing the technology to reduce costs and enhance long-term customer satisfaction.
Let’s decode conversational AI
Today, in this section, let’s delve into a simple, layman-friendly breakdown of the technology behind conversational AI. At its core, conversational AI relies on natural language processing (NLP). NLP is a type of artificial intelligence that enables computers to comprehend, interpret, and generate human language. Think of NLP as teaching machines to “read” and “understand” text or speech in a meaningful way, similar to how humans communicate.
How does it work? Conversational AI is powered by machine learning models. These models are trained on massive amounts of conversational data. The training process allows the model to pick up on patterns and rules in human conversations. The more data the model is exposed to, the better it becomes at conversing. Once trained, the machine learning model can engage in natural dialogues, answer questions, provide recommendations, and complete other tasks that involve language.