What it means
Older chatbots followed scripts and buttons, and broke as soon as someone asked something unexpected. Modern AI chatbots use language models, so they understand questions written in many ways and answer in natural language.
The best business chatbots answer from your own content, such as help articles and policies, and can take simple actions like looking up an order. They also know when to hand over to a person.
Why it matters for a business
A good chatbot answers routine questions instantly, at any hour, and frees your team for harder cases. A bad one frustrates customers. The difference is usually in the content it draws on, the limits it is given and how easily people can reach a human.
A business example
Things to watch
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Base answers on your own content, not the model's general knowledge.
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Make it easy to reach a person.
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Tell users they are talking to an AI.