Artificial intelligence or AI has long had a larger-than-life aura about it. We have pop culture and science fiction to thank for that. Considering how deep an impact films like The Terminator and 2001: A Space Odessey, it is no wonder that the impression of AI we have in our brains is so otherworldly. We think of killer robots and self-aware spaceships so often, we forget to notice the more subtle aspects of life that AI is actually present in. One of the most common use-cases of AI is chatbots. We see these across a range of industries, from a local staffing agency to an insurance provider. This blog explores some of the most innovative chatbots available in 2020.
#1. ALICE The Pioneer
Any conversation about AI chatbots is incomplete without discussing ALICE. Short for artificial linguistic internet computer entity, ALICE is one of the oldest chatbots on the web. Developed more than 2 decades ago, ALICE became immensely popular on the web and performs well even in 2020. While sometimes the chatbot can come up with inaccurate answers, considering the code is a quarter of a century old, it is still a pretty useful AI to have up your sleeve. ALICE has held an esteemed position within AI developers, leading to the development of the more advanced AI we see everywhere today. That’s not to mention Her, the 2013 Academy Award-winning film, drew inspiration from ALICE.
#2. U-Report by UNICEF
U-Report is a fairly basic chatbot but has proven to be immensely useful with regard to the purpose of its creation. Developed by the United Nations Children’s Fund or UNICEF, the AI has assisted the non-profit organization to enhance its global child advocacy efforts. The bot works in a very simple way. It sends out regular polls to citizens, which can help UNICEF identify the major needs of any given needs according to the responses and data gathered. UNICEF then uses this information to make public policy recommendations to countries or communities. For example, in Liberia, the chatbot gathered data from students on teachers offering grades in exchange for sexual favors. The Ministry of Education and UNICEF were then able to work together to address the grave problem.
#3. Endurance to Assist Dementia Patients
Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia can be extremely taxing, both for a patient as well as their families. Older individuals often develop these problems, leading to memory loss and brain function degradation. Endurance is an open-source chatbot designed to help patients understand their condition and feel less lonely and confused. Using superior neural language processing capabilities, the AI can help patients improve immediate recollection, and offer insights to healthcare providers on how the disease progresses. This can potentially help medical researchers find better ways to treat the disease.
#4. Woebot To Help People With Depression
Obviously, mental health problems aren’t limited to dementia in old age. Depression and anxiety remain the two most common types of mental illnesses. They can often be found in younger age groups, such as teens or young adults. Developed by researchers at Stanford University, Woebot is an AI chatbot designed to help people with severe depression. The AI actively listens to your words and offers funny yet emotionally sensitive content to help you deal with negative feelings. Using a mix of responses such as memes, gifs, and old-fashioned encouragement, the AI simulates talking or venting your feelings to a close friend.
#5. Watson Assistant from IBM
IBM has been a leading computer manufacturer and tech giant almost since the start of modern computers. So it is no surprise that the tech leader decided to explore the AI chatbot industry as well, leveraging its vast experience in tech and how it evolves. Watson Assistant is a bot that is pre-trained for specific industry uses and contains information on a range of industries. The AI can understand search queries, historical chats, and even call logs to help deliver the best answers to a website visitor. Editing the bot’s responses does not require any knowledge of coding or software development, which makes it easy to implement, even for non-techies.
#6. Robot Vera for Enterprises
Robot Vera is a powerful AI chatbot used by businesses for improved workflow and productivity in their HR processes. It is widely used by many leading engineering staffing agencies in the US as well. The AI is able to automatically access resume databases, and select the most suitable candidates. The conversational AI can then screen these candidates, communicate job descriptions, and can even conduct video or phone interviews. Robot Vera can execute HR tasks almost 10 times faster than a human worker. This AI is set to grow and become a common feature with most businesses and HR functions across the world.